


All the Queens' Men

by FallenSakuraTree



Category: Sailor Moon - All Media Types
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Reality, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, F/M, Friendship, Gen, Memory Alteration, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-17
Updated: 2015-09-06
Packaged: 2018-01-16 01:56:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 14
Words: 128,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1327510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallenSakuraTree/pseuds/FallenSakuraTree
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Usagi never meets Luna. Instead during a Youma attack when she first transforms by accident, she encounters Jadeite, the remaining Shitennou that is looking to free his fellow Shitennou from Beryl's control and find his King. Usagi will have to find the true purpose of her powers with the help of the sarcastic playboy General in order to save the Scouts and find the King of Earth.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

A/N: Well here we go again. Another off the wall idea that I just had to get out there and I know I am writing 3 other stories on an active basis but I wanted to type up an introduction to see how well it is received. If people like the idea I will continue but it will probably be a slow update until I finish one or more of my other active projects. Oh yeah and this will be a little a/u. Usagi will be more like the manga version so she will start out lazy and whiny but will mature into the role fairly quickly. She’ll have some backslides but nothing like the anime where she seemed to reset every season to a whiny brat. I have also made her a little more bad ass when in scout mode since she won’t have the scouts to soften the targets she won’t just be the 9th inning pitcher in this story.

 

Chapter 1: Sailor Moon appears

Usagi looked out the window with a mournful sigh. Once again she had detention due to her tardiness and once again she was held long after the sun had set. She would be lucky to make it home before nine tonight but there was little she could do. If she skipped detention her mother would simply yell at her and then she’d be in detention for two nights.

The short blonde haired girl was currently lamenting her fate. She was the only one in detention other than her teacher. Objectively she didn’t look like a trouble maker. Her blonde hair done up in an odd meatball style that allowed the hair to flow like ribbons. A rather cute heart shaped face that would one day make her a stunner and to finish it off silver blue eyes and a cute smile that revealed perfectly even white teeth. Yes she didn’t appear to belong here at all but still she was here in a prison of her own making.

While most students would perhaps tackle their homework and attempt to get caught up, Usagi found herself hiding her Sailor V comic book in her text book. She was enamored…the girl who lived in France supposedly was a true super hero and supposedly fought actual monsters. Of course that was silly there was no way a girl with as many movie deals as Sailor V was an actual super hero. With a chuckle she turned her attention back to the page she was reading before a hand suddenly slammed down next to her.

“Erp.” Usagi let out a strangled cry that was half surprise and half guilt at knowing that she was caught. She fearfully turned her head towards her teacher and just as expected her teacher was glaring at her with such ferocity she could have put two holes through her head. “Sorry…”

“Usagi…” Her teacher sighed after a moment of holding the glare on the young girl. “If you don’t apply yourself, you’ll never get anywhere in life. When will you learn this? No matter how much I punish you, I can’t seem to get through to you.” The older woman said with a sigh.

“I’m really trying!” Usagi responded automatically before looking down guiltily at her comic book in her text book. “Er…most of the time...”

Mrs. Neece simply shook her head in defeat. “You know when you first entered this school I was excited to have you. A girl that scored near perfect on her entrance exams! I thought I was in for a genius caliber student. You have the intelligence…you just don’t have any drive to apply it. I just wish I could do something to motivate you to apply yourself.”

“I’ll try harder next time I swear!” Usagi responded indignantly.

“Usagi…that’s the problem there is always a next time with you.” Mrs. Neece responded her voice edged with annoyance. After a moment of consideration she decided holding Usagi here any longer was a fruitless endeavor. “You’re dismissed Usagi…please think about your future and where you are going with life.”

“Alright…” Usagi responded tentatively. Of all her teachers she both feared and respected Mrs. Neece. The woman told Usagi like it was and normally didn’t go into teacher mode of telling her students to do it because I said so. Mrs. Neece always presented reasonable arguments for her instructions and punishments. Of course that didn’t mean she had to like or agree with them.

With little fanfare she packed her bag up and with a final good night she slipped out of the classroom. She decided to walk home since she had not expected to get out so early. Anyway if she took the bus she’d probably end up overshooting her stop as she was preoccupied with what Mrs. Neece had said. Was she really setting herself up for some kind of failure? She honestly didn’t think so. The way she saw it was that it was pointless to apply herself in High School and burn herself out. All she had to do was ace the entrance exams to university and she was good to go.

Still Mrs. Neece rarely gave her bad advice. She was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she found herself wandering into one of the local parks and sat down on a swing. If she had been paying attention perhaps she would have seen the danger. Instead the only warning she received was a growl.

One moment was on the swing and the next moment she realized she was on the ground and her stomach was hurting from the surprise blow. With a gasp of pain she managed to push herself up into a sitting position and just barely managed to keep herself from puking. She hesitantly looked up to see what had hit her.

Instead of finding a High School punk she found a giant monstrous creature standing over at her. It was vaguely humanoid in shape but that is where the similarities ended. First off it was green…yep not normal for a human at all. Then it was heavily muscled and its hands and feet were elongated and ended in sharp claws. If she somehow reasoned her way past those features the face did it. It was animalistic almost looking like a parody of humanity. Red bulging eyes that had no pupils, two large jutting horns, curved elfin ears, and an elongated muzzle like jaw that was full of sharp teeth.

The moment her brain finally recognized the danger she was in she backpedaled away from the thing by crawling like a crab and shrieking for help. Unfortunately no one was around to hear her.

When she gained enough distance she noticed the creature was just standing there. After a moment of indecision she hesitantly got to her feet and called out to the creature in a stammering and fearful voice. “W…w..wh..what do you want?”

“Your energyyyyyy.” The creature growled. It had been drawn to the girl. Unlike most of the useless humans in this city that let out little power and their aura barely registered. The energy that this girl possessed radiated out of her in near limitless waves. Nephrite would surely reward one for draining such a victim. Even better it could leave her alive and use her like a rechargeable battery. With her power being harvested they could have enough power to raise Beryl from her weakened state in a matter of weeks rather than months or years at the current rate.

“M..my energy?” Usagi queried unsure if she had heard the creature right. Why would this creature want her energy? It looked like it was more likely to eat her. After a moment of indecision she decided she wasn’t going to be anyone’s food source. “Well no way buster! I am no one’s energy source!”

The creature chuckled darkly before raising its arm and pointed its fingers towards the girl. “Your wisssshesss are not my concerrrrn.” The finger tips started to glow with a dark purple energy and after a moment of build up five glowing laser like whips of energy suddenly extended from the end of its claws. “Now Sssstand sssstill ssssso I may drain youuu.” It gave her little more warning as it brought its arm back like a whip before lashing out at her intent on draining her completely before kidnapping her.

Right as the energy whip was about to reach her a glowing silver broadsword with a moon attached at the pommel suddenly appeared in front of Usagi. The sword started to spin in front of her and produced a transparent barrier that deflected the attack.

While most people wouldn’t even think to grab a spinning sword, Usagi was not most people. The teen instinctively reached out and just grabbed the weapon’s hilt. She stared at the blade almost surprised she could hold it. The weapon was at least four feet long just a foot shorter than her. The silver blade was double edged. The guard was an intricate flowing design that seemed to follow the moon theme. The edges of the guard also had mini moons in them. Finally the hilt was a beautiful blue and was long enough for a two handed grip.

The moment she had both hands on the hilt she felt a wave of energy take over and she started to glow.

“Whaaaat black magic isssss thissss.” The Youma half hissed half growled in annoyance. Never had it encountered a human that could generate a barrier and carried a weapon of that kind. It stepped back and raised its hand to cover the sensitive eyes from any damage of the silver glow that was lighting up the entire park.

The light around her burst outwards and whereas prior she was wearing her normal school uniform she now wore an interesting combination of items. She wore a white leotard and a blue mini skirt along with knee high red boots. White gloves covered her hands and most of the way up her arm to her elbow. A silver tiara appeared on her head for a moment. Then all of a sudden the outfit started to change and become armor. The shoulders of her leotard sprouted two blue metal pieces of armor that covered her shoulders and extended about five inches past where her shoulder ended but it didn’t stop there. The metal armor spread across her chest and turned silver before stopping right under her chest. The mini skirt stayed to allow maximum mobility. Her boots turned a blue color as armor spread over the boots. Finally her gloves disappeared and in their place blue metal bracers appeared and covered her forearms. The armor protected most of the vital areas while leaving her completely free mobility. Certainly more realistic if she was to fight with a sword than just a simple leotard, not that the mini skirt made much sense for fighting. Then again she was not in a position to complain or control what was happening to her. Her hair was the last part of the change and the meatball styled hair fell apart and straightened before a small metal band of silver appeared at the base of her neck to hold her long blonde hair behind her.

All in all when the change faded away she was an imposing sight…or would have been imposing if she didn’t scream in surprise at the change. Usagi just stared dumb struck at the changes she could see not even wanting to know what she looked like. She craned her head this way and that before coming to the conclusion that she looked rather badass. Perhaps this wasn’t so bad after all. With a confident smile she pointed the sword at the creature. “Alright! Now I suggest you give up now! I don’t know what the hell just happened but I am gonna kick your ass!”

The Youma just blinked at her before realizing that the girl was just as surprised as it was. It hissed darkly in a mocking chuckle. “Sssssilly human…I will have yourrr powerrr yet…you cannot even wield that blade.” It pointed out the fact she currently had the blade pointed towards its foot rather than in any real threatening position.

In the blink of an eye the creature faded from view and before Usagi had any chance to counter the creature reappeared behind her and with a swift back hand it sent her flying away and right into the jungle gym. Usagi hit with a terrible resounding gong as her armor reverberated with the metal of the jungle gym. The sword she had been holding flew out of her hands and landed several feet away from her.

Before she could recover the creature was on her again. Giant fists slamming into her stomach and armor indiscriminately causing her to gasp in the shock of the pain, Usagi fought the urge to scream in pain. She was a fairly nonviolent person and had never actually been in a fight before so even though she recognized something had happened to her and she wasn’t feeling the impacts like she knew she should it was still enough to take her breathe away.

Every time she tried to counter or get up the creature just slammed her back into the ground or took her by the legs and threw her into a tree. At this point she felt bruises in places she never knew existed and was running low on energy to fight back. All she knew was that she was defenseless and this creature was knocking her around like a punching bag. If she could get to her sword she may have a chance but the creature wasn’t letting her anywhere near it.

“Wellll hassss the fight been beaten out of you human?” The creature asked the rhetorical question before it let loose the energy draining whips from earlier. “Any lasssst wordssss?”

“Ple..please just leave me alone.” Usagi managed to get out through a half strangled sob. This was not what she wanted at all. At first she thought this armor thing was pretty cool. She looked like a bad ass version of Sailor V but now she just wanted to go home and pretend this never happened.

“No sssssuch luck, my master Nephrite shall reward me handsomely for finding a living batteryyy.” It chuckled darkly before bringing its energy whips down towards the beaten girl.

The energy draining whips were deflected though at the last minute with a whip made completely of fire.

The sudden intrusion caused both Usagi and Youma to look up in surprise. There standing half way across playground stood a man in a bright white uniform. It almost looked like an admiral’s dress uniform. The entire outfit gleamed from the press and polish. The only thing that differentiated it was the red lining on the breast of the uniform that went around the neck and shoulder before ending in circles on the cuffs. The black shoes and shiny black button completed the ensemble. The young man was of medium height and build fairly. He would fit in fairly easily if not for his distinguishing bright green eyes that appeared to be chips of jadeite and his tousled blonde hair. He had a handsome face with a roguish grin that revealed pearly white teeth.

“So you work for Nephrite eh? How has old prissy pants been?” Jadeite questioned rhetorically since he knew the creature wouldn’t have a clue. “But look how rude I’ve been not even introducing myself. I suppose prissy pants Nephrite can wait.” Waving his hand in dismissal of the subject, Jadeite instead took a small bow and with a flourish he clapped his hands together before slowly opening them. In the middle energy started to swirl before it suddenly flared up in a wave of flames. When the fire died down a traditional black katana appeared that the Shitennou grabbed at the hilt. “I am the Eastern Shitennou, Jadeite and the last remaining true Shitennou that seeks to free his fellow Shitennou from Beryl and find his King. I shall restore the balance and bring this Earth peace with my burning flames of purity. In the name of the Eastern fires that burn in my heart I shall ruin you!” To make his point he leveled the black blade at the creature, a devious grin crossing his face.

The creature backed away from Usagi suddenly unconcerned with the beaten little girl. This man he knew was a serious threat. The man had been ruining plans and attempting to isolate the Shitennou so that he could sway them from Beryl’s control. Beryl had made it quite clear the price of failure to kill this swine would be. With a roar the monster charged the Shitennou with whips extending from both hands once more. It jumped forwards and brought all ten of the energy whips down on the man in front of him.

Jadeite chuckled softly as he parried the energy whips with his sword and a quick burst of fire from his free hand to burn the dark energy away. “You’ll have to do better than that! If Beryl’s dark energy couldn’t quell the fire of purity that roars in my veins what chance do you have of turning me? Now die you piece of shit.” With a quick parry he made a downward slash and let a wave of flames surround the sword. The blade missed the Youma but the blade of fire continued and the creature just managed to get out of the way. The blade of fire faded out a few feet past and left the air with a slightly singed smell from burning ozone.

Meanwhile Usagi had managed to recover and half hobbled over to gather her sword up. It was odd but she could already feel the wounds fading away as if her body was using her energy to speed up the healing process. With a glance down at her stomach she confirmed it. Whereas before she could see the black and blue bruising already appearing through the white material the bruising was already going down. After she gathered herself again she could see that Jadeite was still fighting with the creature and currently having trouble landing a finishing blow.

Every time Jadeite had the creature it jumped out of the way or managed to parry. It was without a doubt that he had skill but the creature was built by Nephrite, the elder Shitennou did not have the finesse that Jadeite possessed but he did have pure power and a tactical mind. With that ability the older Shitennou had created Youma that were generally able to counter Jadeite with brutal power to push past his attacks. This had been the main reason that he couldn’t get anywhere. He had killed the first wave with little effort but now Nephrite was putting his own power into the creatures and he was usually lucky to fight them to a stalemate or wear them out until their energy reserves depleted.

Usagi raised her sword and was not particularly sure what she was going to do but she knew he needed help. A voice in the back of her head seemed to tell her what to do. She didn’t question it since she didn’t know what else to do and raised her large broad sword. “Lunar Rush!” Her feet and sword started to glow silver with energy and she started running towards the weary Youma. She started to fade out of view and as she did she swung her sword through the Youma bisecting it in half just as she disappeared and reappeared a few feet from the Youma.

The Youma stood still for a moment before black blood sprayed out of the side as a long line slowly appeared around its entire middle. A moment later the entire upper half slid off the lower half and after a spray of black ichor like blood it disappeared in a cloud of dust.

Usagi just stared at where the monstrous creature once stood before looking down at her blade and then over to Jadeite stood mirroring her surprise. Finally Usagi couldn’t stand the awkward silence between the two. “Umm…hi…”

“Who are you?” Jadeite asked with a raised eyebrow. He decided that the girl in front of him looked a lot like Sailor V and seemed to have powers like Sailor V and if she killed a Youma she must not be a threat…to him at least not yet. With a flourish of his hands he pressed his Katana away into formless energy and made the katana disappear.

“Um…I’m Usagi…” She answered uncertainly. Really she had no clue what was going on. “Look…I really have no idea what is going on…I got attacked and suddenly a sword appeared. Then!” She gestured to her crazy get up of armor and super short skirt. “I suddenly was in this.”

“So…you’re not a Sailor Senshi?” Jadeite asked a hint of disbelief in his tone. “Because I’ve worked with Sailor V…and she has a similar get up. She is searching for her Princess or something...honestly I could never keep up with her. We split up since she was still getting a signal in France and I followed the signal of my King here.”

“Wait! You mean you worked with Sailor V!” Usagi cried out in delight. Stars practically appeared in her eyes at the knowledge that this man personally knew her hero. “How is she on the set? Is she as nice as she appears in the movies?”

“What? Set?” Jadeite had a puzzled look on his face before he realized she actually thought Sailor V was a movie star. “Wait…wait...you literally just pulled a magic sword out of the air and are running around in a suit of armor and you still think Sailor V is an actress? After watching a monster disintegrate into thin air and watched me create fire out of thin air as well?”

“Well isn’t she?” Usagi asked with a hint of uncertainty in her voice. She was less concerned with the issues that Jadeite pointed out than her idol.

Jadeite rolled his eyes while muttering under his breath. “You’ve gotta be kidding me…I find the only person that can easily kill these Youma and she’s a bigger airhead than Minako.” After a moment of deep breathing he plastered a smile on his face in an attempt to keep from strangling air head 2.0 as he now dubbed this girl. “So…you seriously have no clue who you are? No little white annoying cat that has abandonment issues following you around telling you what to do and who you are and complaining about every god damn thing under the sun?”

“White cat?” Usagi queried with a raised eyebrow.

“Sailor V had an annoying little fleabag of a cat that told her what the hell to do. He was probably the worst intelligence source ever so I’m kinda glad you don’t have one of those.” Jadeite sighed a little in relief over that. Perhaps Usagi wouldn’t be that bad after all. That cat was half the reason he left France…that and Minako’s mix and match proverbs. Seriously if he heard one more ‘Fortune favors a free lunch’ he would lose it. “Never mind…anyway I think it’d be good if I helped you out a little.”

“No…I’ve never seen a cat and what do you mean help me out?” Usagi responded with questioning tone. Suddenly she recognized where she had seen him before. It had been bothering her the whole time but she finally realized who this was…he was the new super-hot exchange student that had arrived at their school this week. “Wait a second!” You’re Jadeite Ashbel! The new exchange student from France! I knew I recognized you from somewhere!”

“”Yes…yes…glad you were able to add that up.” Jadeite muttered. If he were honest though he was a little impressed with the girl despite her seemingly inability to stay on point she was able to add things up rather quickly. A sour look passed his face for a moment upon remembering the fight he had with Minako regarding the same subject. He literally had to transform in front of her and then revert back to his civilian state for her to believe him. “As I was saying though do you have some time…I fear this may take a while and I rather you know what you’re getting yourself into.”

“Get…myself into? You mean like fight? Again?” Usagi questioned.

“Of course…you can kill the Youma easily enough and I require your assistance in finding my King and saving my fellow Shitennou from Beryl.” Jadeite stated as if he was speaking about the weather.

“Um…no…I don’t…I gotta go!” Usagi cried out before she took advantage of her forms additional speed and ran out of the park.

“Wait!” Jadeite cried out in annoyance. He growled in annoyance upon seeing her disappear out of his sight range. “Stupid girl! You’re going to get yourself killed if you don’t even know what you’re fighting!” He called out after her. The Shitennou debated going after the idiot but she had given her name to him and she clearly went to the same school. “Very well Usagi…run away while you can but I’ll find you at school then you idiot girl.” Jadeite commented to himself before casually walking out of the park and fading out of view.

There was no way she was going to get roped into this! Sailor V was awesome to read about and it seemed like fun but the real thing was not something she was prepared for! As she ran home she just wished this armor would go away before she got home! There was no way she could explain this to her mom. With a glance at one of the clocks she saw it was nearing nine…if she was late getting home her mother would ask questions.

Thankfully as she turned onto her street the armor suddenly disappeared and her it must have heard her wish for it to disappear. Her normal clothing reappeared with the addition of a silver chain necklace with an artfully designed sword attached to the end of the chain that appeared around her neck. The little sword appeared to be a miniature replica of her weapon.

“Usagi is that you?” Usagi’s mom called out as the young girl barreled through the front door like a wrecking ball alerting everyone to her arrival.

“Not now Mom! I had a bad day at school and I need to finish up my homework sorry!” Without waiting to hear a response she disappeared up the stairs and into her bedroom before dumping her back pack and falling onto the bed.

She stared up at the ceiling and wondered why the fates hated her. Was it because she hadn’t applied herself at school? Was this her punishment for coveting her Sailor V’s power? If that was case she didn’t want it anymore! “It’s not fair!” Usagi wailed into her pillow.

 

A/N: So here is where we end. I think this is a decent intro chapter. If you’re interested leave a review. If you’re not then don’t or leave a flame about how terrible the idea is. Again I needed to at least flesh the idea out into a one shot. I will continue it when I have time based on any response I get. Thanks again for reading.

 


	2. A charming stalker

A/N: Well…clearly I am back. This story is making it into the regular rotation and will be the final story I’m writing until I finish some others. I will write it as inspiration hits me. Thanks again to my reviewers for the support. I guess this is a pretty interesting concept for people based on the reviews. I am actually pretty interested in it as well. You can thank ladyhawk89 and her story ‘Looking For You’. I got the idea while reading it of “Hey what if instead of just a missing Princess the Prince is missing as well.” Of course to have a missing Prince you need someone with a vested interest in finding him. I’ve always liked Jadeite and out of all the Shitennou I always thought he was the hot headed one and most likely to rebel if I created a reason for it. So here we are onto Chapter 2. Oh I’ve found my works are best viewed in 3/4ths page view just to make it flow better.

 

Chapter Two: A charming stalker

Dark Kingdom:

Nephrite made his way into the throne room at a languid pace. Every step he took could be heard over the silence in the room as his polished black boots clicked against the tile floor. The large bear of a man tugged at the collar of his grey uniform, a tad uncomfortable with the news he was about to bring to Beryl. Failure was not to be tolerated and unfortunately Jadeite had lived to fight another day.

Even worse he mused to himself a new enemy had appeared. If there was one thing he hated to do was provide Beryl with bad news…the woman was unstable and could take new information that impeded her plans any number of ways. Well it was too late now to worry about it. Upon arriving before his Queen, Nephrite clenched his right hand and brought it swiftly to his chest before kneeling before his Queen and waited to be recognized.

For her part Beryl stared at her subordinate for a minute. She let the man sweat a little before deciding to recognize his presence. It was rare for the Shitennou to come to her to report directly so whatever Nephrite had to say was probably important which means she wouldn’t like it. Still it wouldn’t do to punish her Shitennou…right away anyway. “Nephrite, have you missed your Queen?” She said softly the undercurrent of her tone rife with sarcasm.

“I bring news, Queen Beryl.” Nephrite responded respectfully. He ignored the sarcasm and kept his head bowed to avoid giving her a reason to punish him out of anger. If there was one thing he learned it was to not rise to her verbal bait. Unlike Zoisite who ran his mouth without thinking, he had learned to bite his tongue.

“Then by all means my faithful Shitennou. Please go on.” Beryl waved her hand for him to continue not that he could see with his head down.

“My Queen…my most recent attempt to find the Moon Princess has failed…it appears that the rogue General Jadeite has tracked us to Japan.” Nephrite stated ever careful to keep his tone even and respectful.

Beryl nodded a tad disinterested in Nephrite’s report. “It was to be expected, the moment you disappeared from France I knew that troublesome twit would follow. We should count our blessings that Senshi brat is still there from what I can determine.” She stated before glancing down at her Shitennou, she had expected him to rise but instead he stayed bowed at her feet. An annoyed sigh left her lips…it was clear her Shitennou had more and she did not expect her to take it well. That would probably be true but she needed to know. “Is there something further?”

“Yes…it appears a new Sailor Senshi has appeared. One I have never seen before. She destroyed my Youma quite easily.” A frown crossed Nephrite’s face at his own words but Beryl of course could not see it. “One I do not remember from before…a Moon themed warrior. I believe we are getting closer to the Princess though…if this new Senshi is a new guardian created to protect the Princess then we must be close.”

Beryl took in all the information that Nephrite provided in stride. She absentmindedly tapped her nails upon the arm of her throne in thought. What to do what to do. From what she could remember there were only four of those annoying Sailors that were from the inner planets and the outer planet’s Senshi tended to stay far from the Moon to protect the edges of the realm. Still if there was a guardian that Queen Serenity had created to protect her brat…it was something to be concerned with. “Very well Nephrite…we must not rush headlong into the unknown. I want you to scout…” Beryl chuckled at that. “Out this new Senshi and see if she will work with Jadeite like he worked with that annoying Sailor V. If they do it may cause us problems.”

Nephrite nodded before he responded in a calm tone. “Of course my Queen, I shall assess her powers and if she works with the traitor. Once I determine her true threat level I shall provide you with a report.”

“Yes…yes we must be careful with this unknown enemy.” Beryl mused. Any further comments were cut off at the sudden appearance of an unwanted visitor.

“Beryl…are you actually practicing some kind of self-restraint?” A voice cut through the silence of the hall with a chuckle.

“Endymion…” Beryl growled in annoyance before looking towards the giant doors to her throne room. There in the shadows of the doorway stood a tall imposing figure, behind him and to the sides stood three distinctly female figures. Great it was Lord Death and his little entourage of Conquest, War, and Famine was accompanying him as well. “What do I owe the pleasure of this visit from the Four Horsemen?”

Nephrite’s eyes hardened slightly the mention of Endymion. The man was a menace and never showed his Queen proper respect. He couldn’t take it anymore. The casual manner in which he addressed his Queen and appeared unannounced, it would not be tolerated no matter what his feeling about Beryl happened to be. With a slight growl he rose to his feet and turned to the doorway. “You will show the Queen proper respect!”

“Oh?” Endymion responded with a slight chuckle as he stepped into the throne room. The man in question was dressed in flowing black armor. The thick armor covered every inch of his body sans his head and face. The armor was beautifully crafted and had beautiful gold inlay that flowed all throughout the armor’s joints. It all came together in a giant golden scythe in the middle of his chest. Finally a large claymore sword was attached to the back of his armor. All in all he made an imposing sight. “And what are you going to do? You are but a pathetic little lapdog.”

The remaining three figures also stepped into the room. If one had known about the Sailor Senshi it would at first appear to be Sailor Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter. Unfortunately that is where the similarities ended. Sailor Mars had an ever present devious smirk on her face. Her entire outfit was red now with a black skirt and black ribbon in place of what would have been her normal outfit. “I’d love a crack at him.” She commented with a sneer. Attached at her hips were two trench knives and attached to her back was a bow with no string and no arrows. Then again when you used fire as a weapon what need did one have of such things. She took her rightful place at the side of Endymion.

What was once Sailor Mercury stepped out next from the shadows of the doorway and fell into place behind and to the side of War. She was dressed in all black with blue trim accents only on the edges of her skirt and the ribbon attached to her chest. Her eyes were hidden behind a semitransparent blue visor and finally a pair of short swords attached at either hip. “Don’t bother…he hasn’t gotten any stronger since your last beat down.” Famine chuckled darkly.

“Of course he hasn’t…that would require real strength.” Conquest said a hint of acid in her voice. The final member stepped out of the light and stepped to stand behind and to the side of Lord Death. She appeared almost angelic compared to the other three. Her outfit was completely white with no accent color like the others. A golden crown like circlet adorned her head with a small antenna coming up from the front of it. Instead of carrying any weapons in place of the normal gloves worn by the others, they had been replaced by a pair of bracers and what appeared to be a form of brass knuckles only there were large spikes coming out of the knuckles that sparked with electricity. She glared at Nephrite with unveiled contempt.

“Once again Lord Death…I ask why have you interrupted my court.” Beryl attempted to get the conversation back on track. The sooner she found out what he wanted the sooner she could get him to leave her in peace.

“Just here to remind you that your time for find the Moon Princess is running short. Tick tock, tick tock. Our true Queen will soon tire of your failures and then the Four Horsemen shall have to clean up your mess.” Endymion chuckled as he glanced down at his left hand as if inspecting the armor for any defects or scratches. Satisfied that his armor was still in perfect condition he decided to really stick the knife in. “Of course if you were to ask nicely, I’m sure we could help you with that little rogue Shitennou of yours that you failed to turn.”

Beryl seethed in anger at Endymion’s cheap shot. It was to this date her greatest failure. When she had been awoken by her true Queen she had immediately set out to find the Shitennou. Of course she had awoken them all and brought them under her control but soon after Jadeite started to have issues. At first it was a minor rebellion here…ignoring an order there. It seemed to get worse every time he used his powers but then one day after he fought that accursed Sailor V something happened. He had deserted her and then started to actively fight back against her…and even worse some of his memories were unlocked. The brat even had attempted to turn Zoisite once though luckily it appeared no real harm had occurred since the man’s powers were closely associated with ice the fire of Jadeite could not cut through to him.

Realizing that she had been lost in thought, Beryl brought up a quick retort to Lord Death’s observation. “And how about your little rogue member? Weren’t you supposed to be the Five Horsemen…I believe Famine refused to join you?” She chuckled darkly.

Lord Death leveled a steely glare at Queen Beryl before addressing his counterpart with an acidic tone. “Do not dare to question the Four Horsemen. She was unworthy to join the Horsemen. The damned girl’s power was love…it was a weakness that we could not afford.” Endymion spit out in contempt before turning his back to Beryl. “I take my leave Queen Beryl…but just remember if you do not deliver soon I shall step in…with or without your consent.” Endymion raised his hand in a casual wave before turning to his fellow Horsemen. “Come along girls we must prepare for when the Queen’s toy soldiers fall apart on her.”

Beryl and Nephrite watched as the four disappeared from her throne room. While Nephrite silently seethed at the insults hurled at him, Beryl was fantasizing about boiling that jack ass alive in his own armor. How dare he come into her throne room and not only make light of her failures but tell her that he was all but taking over. She would have to speak with her Queen about him. The arrogant Lord would get his and she would make sure his little entourage suffered as well. Once she found that damned Moon Princess she would finally be the favored one.

“Nephrite.” Beryl suddenly said which caught the Shitennou off guard.

“My Queen?” Nephrite responded coming out of his stupor with a slight shake of his head.

“I am counting on you to find the Princess and deal with her new Guardian. Just remember if you fail…I shall send Zoisite to help.” Beryl stated with a small smirk.

“Of course my Queen.” Nephrite responded with a slight frown before his disappeared from view and back to his room.

Beryl was left alone in her throne room. She had much to think about and many plans to make. She would find that Princess yet and make sure she paid dearly for the trouble she was causing.

 

Earth –

Usagi tossed and turned that night while she slept. Odd dreams that made no sense came to her both fleeting and surreal in nature. Eventually though the daylight delivered her from her odd dreams. The light of the morning sun started to peak through the curtain and though it didn’t wake her up…her alarm sure did.

The moment the alarm started to go off Usagi felt around with one of her hands. Not even raising her head out of the mound of pillows she had built around her, Usagi finally found the cursed clock. A moment later it was into the wall. So…perhaps the alarm would fail but her little brother wouldn’t!

“HEY!” Shingo banged on Usagi’s door before needlessly kicking it open. “Come on Usa-baka! It’s time to wake up!” Usagi’s little brother had oddly blonde colored hair that didn’t quite match a dirty blonde but nor did it match Usa’s hair. In fact it just seemed to be a unique color. Not quite red, note quite blonde, and not quite brown. The tousle haired youngster took a running leap and body slammed his sister.

“AH!” Usagi cried in surprise from the sudden impact of her little brother knocking the wind out of her. Before she could respond Shingo was already up and running out the door before she could respond with anything but some muttered curses.

Finally dragging herself out of bed, Usagi glanced at her downed alarm clock and immediately panicked! How could she be late again? Oh Mrs. Neece was going to eviscerate her if she didn’t get to school in time today. She stopped ruminating on her fate and got herself in gear. Quickly throwing on whatever she could find that half worked she was down the stairs in record time and almost out the door before her mother caught her by the back of the shirt.

“Usa…what have I told you about skipping breakfast!” Ikuko let a slightly exasperated sigh out at her daughter’s inability to even attempt to care for herself even at sixteen. The girl was lucky to be alive at this point with her diet. She dragged her daughter back to the kitchen table and pointed at the chair with a glare. “SIT.”

“Yes’um…” Usagi responded with only a small amount of chagrin in her voice. She looked down at the ‘meal’ her mother had prepared. Plain oatmeal and a glass of orange juice…was her mom trying to kill her! Now she would be late and she may die before she even got to her first class. She carefully poked the substance before looking up at her mom to see if she was watching.

She was. Ikuko just stood there watching her daughter to make sure she ate her breakfast. Normally Usagi managed to get out the door before she caught her but every once in a while she could get her before she had a chance to escape. “Faster you eat the faster you get to school.”

Usagi looked around for help to her plight before she realized her father was still there. Success she may get to school on time yet. “Dad…can I be excused. I need to get to school.” She could feel her mother’s eyes boring into her skull but she managed to ignore it in favor of a response from her father.

Hidden behind his newspaper her father was sipping on his coffee completely unaware of the brewing fight he was about to be pulled into. Kenji finally realized that he was being talked to and put the paper down. He hadn’t heard what had one on between the two but one look at Ikuko told him not to interfere…his wife may normally be a happy homemaker but the woman was scary when she had her mind set on something. He quickly retreated behind his newspaper again. “Listen to your mother, Usagi…and for the love of god do not get me involved in your fights. I’ve had enough nights on the sofa from when you were younger.”

Usagi glanced back up at her mother again in hopes that perhaps she had given up but unfortunately she was silently waiting for her to finish her breakfast. Heaving a soft sigh of defeat, Usagi reluctantly decided to finish her breakfast…in record time. She poured the orange juice into the oatmeal before quickly mixing it together and then shoveling the concoction down her throat. She was unaware that her family was watching her with varying looks of terror and amazement of Usagi’s irregular method of eating.

Kenji just smiled a little before going back to his newspaper. Shingo just stared in disgust and Ikuko just shook her head in defeat. Her daughter would never find a boyfriend that was for sure.

“Alright finished!” Usagi called before she was out the door and stampeding her way towards the school.

By some stretch of luck she managed to get to school with more time to spare than she expected. In fact this was the fastest she had ever run…for a moment she was wondering what the change was but her mind wandered to the previous night. With an iron will she shut down that thought process right then and there, she refused to think about that anymore. There was no way she was getting roped into fighting for real. Playing as Sailor V in video games was one thing but after last night she had her fill thank you!

“Usagi!” Naru called out to her with a look of surprise on her face. “What are you doing here so early?”

“Umm…I guess I just got up early is all. Usagi responded with a laugh.

“Really?” Naru raised her eyebrow in disbelief before shaking it off and offering her best friend a smile. “Well whatever your reasoning it’s nice to see you here so early. Have you met the new transfer student yet? Cause he is absolutely dreamy.” Naru had closed the distance at this point and started dragging her towards the new guy. She just had to introduce Usagi to him the guy was a senior and was soooo nice.

Naru proceeded to happily drag Usa along against her will. “Come on I got to talk to him and the moment I mentioned you he got suuuuuper interested.” Naru turned her head to face Usagi and sent her a sly wink. “Maybe he saw you yesterday and is interested.” The red haired girl teased in a good natured tone.

“Yeah right!” Usagi automatically retorted but something was telling her this was going to be a bad thing. If she wasn’t trying to completely forget about last night she may have realized just who Naru was taking her to see and what she had told Jadeite last night. Instead Usagi blindly followed Naru and continued to chat with her best friend about homework and what Mrs. Neece would do when Usagi got to class on time for once. It may give her teacher a heart attack.

“There he is!” Naru excited voice brought Usagi out of her fantasies regarding everything that Mrs. Neece would say to her about how proud she was. The red haired girl pulled her friend towards Jadeite who happened to be surrounded by women on almost all sides. This brought a frown to Usagi’s face…she really disapproved of playboys and always hated that they took advantage of young gullible women. Well she would be having none of it if he tried anything on her that was for sure!

Jadeite laughed politely at a joke one of the girl’s told him. An easy going smile spreading across his face as he cheerfully bolstered the girl’s ego with his honeyed words. “Really Elsa…you are just too much. But I can’t thank you enough. How did I get so lucky as to have such a wonderful group of young women willing to accept the transfer student? I can tell you that I have had some chilly receptions.” Jadeite laughed a little before his trademark easy smile came back. He met each of the girl’s eyes and just winked at one or two when they blushed. He kept a dejected sigh from leaving his lips and instead mentally cursed his fate. Unfortunately fighting the Dark Kingdom came with a lack of love life.

Just as he was about to regal the girls with another made up story of his past school life he caught sight of Naru…and the girl behind her must be Usagi. He almost couldn’t believe it had been as easy as this. Earlier this morning he had run into Naru and after chatting with her for a few minutes the girl disclosed about how her friend Usagi is always late and would totally be jealous she was missing out on this. Of course he inquired as to who this Usagi was and if there were other girls with the name in the school. He wove a masterful tale of meeting a girl named Usagi last night that went to the school and how he’d love to talk to her again.

It appeared that Naru had found the story genuine and was bringing Usagi over. He studied Usagi out of the corner of his eyes while carrying a conversation with one of the girls. It was a fairly quick confirmation but yes that was indeed the girl he met last night…the new Sailor Senshi that he had to convince to not only work with him but teach how to fight. This was going to be a challenge…at least Minako was both willing to fight and had been trained by her cat…of course the training had been questionable.

Not wanting to be rude to the entourage he had easily gathered he plastered a smile on his face and slowly got up. “I’m sorry ladies…we shall have to continue later. I have an old friend to catch up with. If I don’t see you girls at lunch I am sure I’ll have some of you in classes and see you in the mornings.” He just raised his hands and moved them in a calming motion as if requesting that they lower their voices at the ‘awws’ and ‘don’t go!’ he got. He smiled in sympathy. “Thank you girls…really I mean it. I would be lost without you guys. I am sure I’ll catch up with all of you.”

After finally disengaging himself completely he walked over to a starry eyed Naru and an angry Usagi. He just smiled at the two before making a flourish of a bow to Naru and kissing the top of her hand. “Good to see you again Miss. Naru.” He had a talent for names it was part of the reason that despite his quick and fiery temper at times he had been the spy master prior to the fall of the Silver Millennium. With his charm, good lucks, and disarming personality he could weasel information out of just about anyone.

After he had greeted Naru again he turned to Usa with an easy smile. “And you must be Usagi…I told Naru here of my plight. I informed her that I met a girl named Usagi last night and I just had to see her again. You see you have been on my mind all of last night…I just couldn’t stop thinking of you. She was most helpful and informed me that there was but one Usagi at this school.”

Naru sighed with hearts practically in her eyes. “How romantic…it is like Cinderella.”

“It is most certainly not like Cinderella.” Usagi felt her eyebrow twitching as she responded hotly to her friend’s comparison. She may normally be a bit of a whiny brat and lazy sometimes…even she could admit her worst faults but this creep was downright terrible. He was completely different from last night and was a complete player! If there was one thing she hated were two faced liars and it seemed that Jadeite fit the bill. He changed his personality to take advantage of young innocent girls and didn’t seem to be bothered at all that he spilled more lies than truth from his lips. “Care to talk in private...Mister Cool.”

“Your wish is my command, Princess.” Jadeite responded in a happy tone but his smile seemed to mock her slightly.

At his words she seized up for a moment. An odd memory from last night’s dreams coming to the foreground but before she could grasp at the image and what it may mean it was gone.

“Are you alright?” Jadeite asked with a raised eyebrow. He waved his hand in front of her face. “Earth to Usagi…”

“Fine…” Usagi trailed off before shaking her head. “Just…a weird memory…I don’t know. It was gone before I could grasp it.”

“Ah.” A slightly more serious look crossed his face at the information. He gently led her away from prying eyes as he glanced at his watch. Five minutes before class started…he’d have to talk to her fast. Once he got her alone and away from some of the loitering students he turned to Usagi again. He dropped his voice to a whisper. “Those memories…they will keep coming. They’ll make more sense in time but sometimes the oddest phrases will trigger a flash.”

“Well I don’t want to remember.” Usagi responded hotly as she leveled a glare at the arrogant jerk of a man. “I just want to go back to normal and forget that ever happened. Now are you going to leave me alone or what?”

“No…because I need you baka.” Jadeite responded with a slight glare. “And you need me.”

“I do not need you. You two faced jerk!” Usagi hissed in response trying to keep her voice from turning into a yell. The blonde girl while normally not imposing could generate a terrifying aura when truly enraged. “I just want to be left alone!”

“Well I don’t care if you want to be left alone or not.” Jadeite responded in a menacing tone. “I need you to help me find my King by killing those Youma and you need my help to help you from being killed.”

“I won’t need your help because I’m not fighting anymore.” Usagi responded with finality in her tone.

“That may be fine for you but the Dark Kingdom won’t give a shit if you want to fight or not.” Jadeite responded hotly. “You’re already on their radar and they won’t stop till they find and eliminate you. They registered you as a threat the moment they saw you kill that Youma!”

“How would they know!” Usagi responded before poking Jadeite in the chest. “Unless you told them?! You jerk! How could you do something so underhanded to get me to help you?!”

Jadeite brushed her hand away before leaning in towards Usagi. The normal jadeite colored eyes seemed to smolder with an intense fire as he stared her down. “Listen here you baka. Those Youma send real time feed back to their masters so the moment you appeared they knew about you. The moment they watched you kill the Youma they started up a hunt to find and eliminate you.”

“Well how would you know all this?” Usagi responded a tad suspiciously. The man had not really done much to gain her trust or show that he spoke in anything but lies. Clearly she was skeptical over the entire situation…she was lazy not stupid but when it came to her life…well her mind was working overtime.

“I am a spy master.” Jadeite responded simply a small smirk crossing his lips. “How do you think I got all those girls to hang off me? I pull the charming transfer student from another country routine and I’m in. I’m new and exotic…sexy even.” He dropped the last part to a whisper and made a suggestive wiggle of his eyebrows.

Usagi felt herself color slightly but refused to be dissuaded. “Well I don’t care what you were or who you are. I refuse to fight. I almost died last night!”

“You wouldn’t if you learned your power or would you like to get your ass beat into the ground when they find you?” Jadeite countered with a raised eyebrow.

The minute bell rang and Usagi gave him one last final glare. “The answer is still no! Now I gotta go…don’t bother me ever again!” She called over her shoulder as she ran towards her class.

“Sure Princess…sure.” Jadeite said to himself with a slight shake of his head. So the little spitfire would be a little harder to convince…well that was fine. He was pretty damn persistent especially when it was something he cared about and he was going to find his King. With a slight shake of his head Jadeite made his way to his own classroom.

Usagi was walking home from her normal stop at the arcade. She had counted herself lucky. The remainder of the day the arrogant jerk stayed away and thankfully appeared to heed her warning. At some point she lost Naru to him during lunch but it was a loss she was willing to accept to keep away from the two faced prick. Seriously was it a problem with every guy that they didn’t take no for an answer.

Finally she arrived home and threw the door open with a smile. Her mom wouldn’t be yelling at her today. No detention…no problem at least that is what she thought. Usa was about to call out to announce her arrival home when she heard voices in the kitchen…had they started dinner without her really? How rude! She thought with a huff.

She was almost to the kitchen when she heard a voice she would have never expected in her own home of all things! She visibly paled and felt an oncoming panic attack from what she was hearing.

“And that is how I ended up here in Japan Mrs. Tsukino.” Jadeite’s voice floated out from the kitchen.

“Oh call me Ikuko. If you are going to be helping my little Usa then you have to call me by my name at the least. I really can’t thank you enough for arranging this Jadeite.” Ikuko responded before her voice elevated to catch her husband’s attention. “Isn’t it wonderful Kenji…Usagi finally got a tutor. I am so proud of her.”

“Just don’t touch my Usa…you touch her you’ll be a dead man honor roll student or not.” Kenji’s voice had lowered a little at that threat.

“Of course not Mr. Tsukino…this is strictly professional do not worry. I will make sure to keep you appraised of all progress we make. Let me be the first to assure you that while your daughter is quite beautiful she is safe with me.” Jadeite responded in a calm voice.

“Kenji! He is trying to help our Usa get into a good University. I have a good feeling about him and I want him to keep coming back. There is no way he can work in a hostile environment or would you rather he tutor your daughter at his house?” Ikuko threatened.

“Fine…fine you can work here…I won’t bother you but I swear…one air out of place…” Kenji trailed off.

“Of course Mr. Tsukino, on my honor your daughter will be safe from me and any other ruffians we would run into.” Jadeite responded.

“What!” Kenji practically screamed. “What ruffians! I won’t let my daughter out into the middle of the night to become a ruffian!”

“Mr. Tsukino…I would not dare let Usagi become such.” Jadeite responded in his proper and upper class tone that he had adopted for the situation. “It is just that we may have to volunteer in the city as part of our class credit and it would look good on our college applications.”

“See dear…he is only thinking of Usa’s entrance exams just as he said.” Ikuko set about calming Kenji’s ruffled feathers so to speak over the situation. “How about a nice shoo fly pie for dessert…your favorite.”

“Well…alright…” Kenji responded. “But don’t think you can win me over with your cooking every time!”

Great Usagi thought…now that creep had won her parents over. She was going to transform and murder that idiot. Training bedamned the sword was a pretty damn easy interface. Point and stab until Jadeite stops screaming or bleeding out…whichever comes first. Even better her parents would never know! I mean if she came running in like a wild woman he’d never have a chance. Her shoulders sagged a little…who was she kidding? She didn’t even know how to transform.

After drawing herself back up to her full height, Usagi steeled herself for a fight she was going to call that jerk out and humiliate him right in front of her parents! That way he’d be forced to leave in shame and at least her Dad would be on her side once she exposed the lie. With a small nod to herself she let out one last breath and walked into the kitchen her eyes searching out Jadeite before finding him. “You!”

“Usagi!” Ikuko cried out in surprise over her daughter’s venomous tone. Kenji looked up in surprise before looking between Usagi and Jadeite. He had not expected his sweet daughter to be so angry. Shingo was just bouncing in his chair waiting with a superior smile on his face for the inevitable blow up when Usa was told about her assigned tutor.

“Me.” Jadeite acknowledged with an easy going smile on his face. He didn’t bother to get up from his chair since he expected a reaction like this when she finally got him. In fact after he managed to get Usagi’s address from Naru, he went to Usagi’s teacher Mrs. Neece and floated the idea. A sour look almost crossed his face at that. Usagi’s teacher was sharp and had not been drawn in by his charming personality. In the end he gotten her blessing but he had a feeling the teacher thought he liked Usagi now…erg.

“What do you think you’re doing in my house and how did you even get here!?” Usagi half yelled and half demanded. She was mad as hell and didn’t even acknowledge anyone else in the room.

“I’m your new tutor. I spoke with your friend Naru and she told me how concerned she was that you wouldn’t make it to University. I happened to mention to her that I was a brilliant student and would be more than willing to help such a nice young lady like you.” A patronizing smile flashed across Jadeite’s face for a fraction of a second. So fast that only Usagi caught it from the look in her eyes. Jadeite let the easy going smile take over again as he continued in a clam voice. “Of course I cleared it with Mrs. Neece first.”

“Ah ha!” Usagi crowed in triumph. “You’re a fraud there is no way you’re an honor student!” She knew that her only hope was getting her Father on her side so she turned to appeal to the dark haired man. “Daddy you’ve gotta kick him out he’s a transfer student and we can’t even confirm that he is who he says he is. He told me today that he’s gonna make me do something I don’t wanna do. I think he’s trying to get me alone…so he can…take advantage of me…” Usagi ended with a fake shudder and half sob.

“WHAT!” Kenji practically screamed before rounding on Jadeite ready to rip this hooligan apart. No one came into Kenji Tsukino’s home and threatened his daughter without going through him first. “Is this true? If it is you better hope you’re a track runner because I have no qualms about running you over with my car!”

“Usagi you apologize right now!” Ikuko responded on the other end of the spectrum. She hadn’t been Usa’s mother for near eighteen years without knowing her daughter. Unlike Kenji she didn’t have blinders on when it came to her daughter. If Usa thought she could get out of something she had no problem manipulating her father’s overprotective nature to get out of it. Unfortunately Kenji fell for it every time.

“Mr. Tsukino…and Ikuko…a moment of your time and I believe I can put to rest these baseless accusations.” Jadeite responded calmly but that shouldn’t be a surprise when one considered that he fought towering monsters on a daily basis. He reached into his bag and withdrew his transcripts from France…hey how do you think he met Minako. With a flourish he presented the information to Kenji. He knew when to keep the smile off his face or it looked too much like gloating. So he dropped the smile and adopted a serious look. “Here you are…all of my classes. As you can see honor roll since High School started and of course I am currently taking College credits. Those results are also included.”

Kenji practically ripped the records from the young man’s hand, intent on confirming his daughter’s story. He immediately scoured the documents looking for any hint of a B or C but he found none. In fact he soon realized just what Jadeite meant by college courses. The young man must have been a genius…advanced engineering…even international political science and some detailed history classes. A begrudging respect was formed as he handed the documents back. “Well…everything checks out…you seem to be a better tutor than I could ever hope for, for my little Usa.” Kenji glared at his daughter for once actually putting his foot down. “Usagi you apologize right now. If this young man helps motivate you I don’t care if he is here every night.”

“Buuuut Dad.” Usagi whined. There was no way she would apologize to that giant jerk.

Ikuko meanwhile looked over the records with stars in her eyes. This boy was perfect…perfect, perfect, perfect! Oh he would be quite the son in law that was for certain. She let out a small sigh already fantasizing about the wedding. What a story to tell the grandchildren not to mention Anna at book club would be so jealous. Oh she would remind Anna every month about her daughter’s wonderful husband and how they were changing the world. She could already picture the mission trips to help other people and of course the inventions to help the world. Yes…this would do nicely. Shaking herself out of her fantasy land she handed the transcripts back with a smile before returning to the stove. “Alright everyone dinner is ready!”

Dinner passed quickly with Kenji starting to warm up to Jadeite now that he knew for sure his daughter wasn’t going to turn into a thug. Ikuko kept fantasizing about the day the two would start dating and Shingo…well Shingo proceeded to torment Usagi at every turn in the conversation. Finally Usagi continued to make biting remarks while Jadeite just kept smiling that bedamned easy going smile of his as if nothing bothered them. It was finally after dinner and Jadeite had strong armed her into leaving the house with him for their tutoring session…which is what brought them to the park.

“I won’t do it.” Usagi said with a glare directed at what was her nemesis. It was official the arrogant jerk had made it to the list. She would fight him tooth and nail on everything from here on out. How dare her turn her own parents against her!

“And I’m telling you…transform or I am going to start hurling fire balls at you, you little whiny brat.” Jadeite responded with his own hard glare. The easy going smile was gone replaced by an unhappy frown. There was no way he was going to let a petulant teenager stop him from his mission but unfortunately he needed said petulant teenager on board to a certain extent.

“You wouldn’t dare!” Usagi shrieked back in disbelief. She couldn’t believe he was actually threatening her now! To her satisfaction the jerk winced from the shrill quality of her voice.

“I would because that is exactly what the Dark Kingdom would do. If you don’t learn how to fight now they’ll find you and kill you.” Jadeite responded with his ever present frown since the start of the conversation pulling down at the side of his lips.

“Well they won’t find me if I don’t fight!” Usagi countered.

“Yes they will baka. They already were drawn to you because of your energy once. Unless you learn how to control your transformation they are going to track you down and kill your entire family before hooking you up like a god damn battery.” Jadeite growled with a harsh edge to his words.

“I won’t do it! They’ll be safe.” Usagi shook her head in denial. She didn’t want to think about one of those monsters coming after her.

Jadeite suddenly went still before he swung his head towards the South. He felt a sudden energy source…and it was coming right for them. Even more concerning he felt another following the first and one to the West…clearly Nephrite was out to see how powerful the new scout was. He turned back to Usagi with a sympathetic glance. “Well that is too damn bad. I just picked up two Youma and possibly a third coming towards us.”

“What!” Usagi gasped before looking at Jadeite. “But…how do you know they’re coming towards us?”

“Your aura is like a god damn bon fire since you transformed. Now you better figure out how to do it and fast.” Jadeite commented before he closed his eyes briefly before raising his hand to the air with his fingers spread out. “Flames of the Eastern Empire! Aid me now in my time of need!” With a shout he suddenly disappeared in a column of fire. Just as quickly as the blast of fire appeared it disappeared just as quickly leaving Jadeite behind in his Shitennou uniform. A confident smirk came to Jadeite’s face before he formed his katana again out of the fire between his hands.

“How do I transform?” Usagi cried in urgency…there was no way she wanted to die because she couldn’t transform.

“Hell if I know…you’re a Sailor Senshi, you figure it out.” Jadeite smirked.

“You said you’d help me and this is not helping!” Usagi stomped her foot in anger.

“Well…” Jadeite paused a moment as he tried to think about how Minako transformed. “Hmm…Sailor V…she used to call out something stupid like Venus power or something.”

“Right!” Usagi nodded before grasping the small silver chain and the sword. “Venus! Power!” She screamed…expecting to transform once more…but of course nothing happened. Not even a little budge of power actually.

“Yeah…that isn’t going to work, baka. Her powers are tied to Venus…I would say try the Moon. Your sword was completely Moon themed.” Jadeite responded with a roll of his eyes. He left Usa to her attempts to transform because the two enemies were upon them. Two Youma burst out of the trees…both appeared cat like. He quickly studied the forms a frown crossing his face. The two creatures were much lighter than anything Nephrite made…in fact they appeared to be built for speed and tactical strikes. Great, Zoisite must have decided to step in and that meant bad things for both Usagi and him. If it had been Nephrite’s work they would be too dumb to realize that one human was fighting them. Now he had to fight two and they would quickly realize Usagi was essentially crippled meaning he’d be on defense.

“You better transform quick!” Jadeite called back to her as he sent a wave of fire with a swipe of his hand but he didn’t bother to wait for the result he was already in motion. He twisted his sword around to bring it down in a diagonal strike. Of course the creatures just phased out of view before he could even hope to hit them. With a growl he rolled forward to avoid getting slashed in the back when one of the creatures reappeared behind him. He came out of the roll just in time to counter the strike of the one going after him…crap the other one…it was almost on Usagi. No time to assist her though, Jadeite was barely able to keep up with the monster that attempted to strike at his weak points.

Usagi stared in disbelief as the creatures faded in an out of her sight. What was she supposed to do against these things? She still couldn’t even transform and she quickly realized the predicament she was in. If she didn’t transform she would actually be killed…this wasn’t fair! She didn’t sign up for this! “Leave me alone!” She shrieked as the Youma not occupying Zoisite appeared above her and came down towards her with claws extended ready to rend her head from her body.

Two things happened at once. The first was that Usagi started to transform…the second was that the power signature from the West appeared in a golden flash.

“Crescent Beam!” A voice yelled from above the participants of the fight. A wave of yellow colored energy rocketed down and smashed into the creature in mid-air. It sent the creature flying into a nearby tree with a thud.

Sailor V had appeared and landed with a smile before standing in her traditional pose. The attack allowed enough time for Jadeite to regroup with the two Senshi and for Usa to complete her transformation armor and all. While the attack had disrupted the attack pattern of the creatures the two cat like Youma regrouped as well.

“I am Sailor Venus! In the name of the love that exists in this world I must punish you! Lay down your arms and accept the love and kindness of other or prepare to fight!” Sailor Venus called out.

“Should I be doing that?” Usagi asked Jadeite while Venus was finishing up her speech.

“What? No!” Jadeite responded hotly. “Seriously don’t encourage her…she does that all the time.

“But you do it too…” Usagi trailed off with a hint of confusion in her voice.

“Yes but I don’t rip my announcements off from a Saturday morning cartoon show for kids.” Jadeite responded with a roll of his eyes.

“HEY!” Sailor Venus seethed. “I do the best I can with what I got! Now are you gonna help me or what Jadeite!”

“Against my better judgment...yes.” Jadeite responded before he rushed towards the Youma he was fighting earlier. He had worked with Sailor V…or Venus as she was calling herself now that he knew she would take care of the other one. He brought his sword across in a wide arc and let loose a blast of fire. He didn’t bother waiting before sending a wave of fire out from his free hand. While the Youma managed to dodge the attack from the sword it was caught in the gut by the blast of fire from his hand. A grin crossed his face…this is why he loved Zoisite…smart as hell but his creatures were crap compared to Nephrite’s creations. While Nephrite carefully crafted specific Youma for his opponents, Zoisite coveted intelligence and made his Youma so that they could learn attack patterns of the enemy. On most fighters it worked, the creatures would draw the fighter out until the Youma learned the attack pattern of the enemy and then it would strike. While most fighters would eventually fall to such a method of attack since it was hard to change your natural pattern of attack it left them vulnerable to people like him. Unpredictable fighters could cut through them like they were butter once they got a chance to surprise the Youma. There was nothing to predict because Jadeite made it all up on the fly. New combinations were tested and tried.

Usagi stared at the two fighters in awe. This Sailor Venus looked a lot like Sailor V and seemed to share some attacks but maybe it was a Sailor thing? She wanted to help though! If she didn’t fight these things would keep coming after her and possibly kill her! She spotted her chance to help. Sailor Venus and Jadeite had just finished kicking both their targets into the same tree.

She raised the giant broad sword and felt it glow with power. After letting the power course through her body and into her feet along with her sword she took off towards the two downed creatures. “Lunar Rush!” She felt compelled to scream out before just like last time she phased out of existence and reappeared a few feet from the two creatures.

Both creatures only had moments to realize that they were in peril. A white line of power surrounded both of their midsections from the cut. Right before their sides burst open and black ichor sprayed the surrounding area they managed to upload the data of this new Sailor to Zoisite through the shared hive mind of all Youma. The data transfer completed just before they disappeared in a wave of power and left behind nothing but dust. They were but scouts…fairly weak and only meant to be killed by this new Senshi to judge her power and thanks to Usagi’s need to help her friends the goal was accomplished. Now the Dark Kingdom would know all about her.

Sailor Venus turned toward the two with a large smile on her face. “Thanks Jadeite!” She paused briefly as she realized the girl she had saved was indeed a scout as well. The only thing was that the girl did not match any memories she had of any scouts that wore armor and carried a sword other than the Outers and this girl was not Sailor Uranus that was for sure. “Umm…who are you?”

“I’m Usagi…who are you?” Usagi asked with a slight cock of her head. She knew she had introduced herself as Sailor Venus but she looked so familiar.

“I am Sailor Venus better known as Sailor V!” Sailor Venus declared with a smile.

 

A/N: I hope this was a good chapter. Please review and post your thoughts and feelings. I responded to all my reviews I believe but again thank you to Starlit Warrior, Serene Amethyst, Secrets, Ascella Star, Xxkirbylover11xX, Shibue Miyuu, and Lady Tsumetai for convincing me to continue. I had debated on bringing Minako in later but she is so fun to write I couldn’t wait to bring her in. I also kinda think since it is gonna be 3 on 7 not counting Beryl they will need all the help they can get. Again concerns questions or issues please let me know.


	3. A Night at the Carnival part 1

A/N: Hello all...I know I am kinda ignoring my other stories but I have been having so much fun with this story and the reviews have been motivating me to continue with it. Not to mention I kinda have writer's block on my other big story. Anyway thanks again for the reviews guys! It really means a lot to me. And thanks again for pointing out my errors and grammatical issues. I have since bullied/asked/begged Fleury's Apprentice70 into Betaing for me. I can only assume I managed to convince her that it was a good call and she didn't fully understand how terrible my grammar is. I want to thank her for putting up with me. I hereby affirm any errors you find are due to my artistic license clashing with facts.

Chapter 3: A night at the carnival, part 1

 

The Dark Kingdom –

 

Mamoru strolled through the door that led to the main room that he and the other Sailors used as their meeting room. Due to his influence and power within the Dark Kingdom he had acquired a personal wing for the group away from the low level creatures. Beryl and her Generals had much the same set up due to their current favored status. A dark chuckle escaped his lips. Of course, that was not going to last very long. Not with how impatient and foolish Beryl tended to be.

The room he entered was in itself large. It had a high ceiling with a crystal chandelier that radiated light from high above. Since they hardly spent time in there, the furnishing was sparse. In the far corner there was the kitchen that was modern. It may have been surprising, but then again, when you can use energy to construct what you desire well let's just say it certainly doesn't hurt. The remaining space was dominated by a large table with six chairs though only five of them were ever in use at one time since one of their numbers never joined them.

It didn't take him long to find what he was looking for in there. It sat on one of the chairs. A slight smirk crossed his face when he finally spotted his quarry…well sitting wasn't quite correct. He cleared his throat a little and wiped the amused look from his face. It wouldn't do to make the rather prim and proper cat think that he found her current situation amusing. Sure enough the cat was currently in "her" chair curled up in a little ball snoring. Behold the face of evil and know its name, Mamoru thought with a stifled chuckle. Once more he attempted to awaken her with a subtle clearing of his throat before he decided to go for the most direct approach. The last thing he wanted was another fight between Rei and Luna. The two certainly went at it when they came to a disagreement. "Luna…we're back."

Luna unfurled herself slowly; putting her front legs out in a stretch before looking up at Mamoru with tired eyes. She blinked slowly, attempting to recalibrate her brain. Finally after a full ten seconds she was up and more or less functioning. She huffed slightly when she caught the corners of his lips turned upwards. Dammit he had caught her snoring again, she just knew it. With a slight glare she pulled herself up to a sitting position in her special chair. While everyone else had human sized chairs her chair was cat sized and had been set higher so she could sit eyelevel with everyone else. "Did you find out anything about Beryl's progress?"

Mamoru shook his head slightly. They hadn't.

The main door to the hall opened with a hiss before the remaining Horsemen started to file in from the hallway. He gave a slight nod to the others before he continued with his report to Luna while the rest of the Horsemen took their seats. "She did not brag as she normally does but it appears that a new Sailor Senshi has appeared. Beryl believes her to be a Guardian of the Princess. Due to that she also believes that the Princess is nearby."

"It would make sense," Rei said as she sat down in her seat that was next to Mamoru's. No longer was she powered up as War but dressed in a simple shrine maiden's outfit that harkened back to what she normally wore when she worked at her grandfather's temple prior to her awakening. She shot a small smile towards Mamoru before expanding her argument, showing once more that while she may not have the brains of Ami, she was still clever. "We were after all reborn in the same area."

"Yes. But don't you find it odd that if the Queen was so worried about her daughter's safety, that she would have both those of us of the Dark Kingdom and those loyal to the Moon reborn in the same area?" Ami reasoned out a slight frown on her face. She spent much of her time in the library trying to find a way to fill the holes that they all had in their memories. She was dressed in a traditional blue blouse that was buttoned up to her throat along with a long ribbed skirt of the same color. Her blue hair matched the skirt in color. In fact, most of her coloring choices went along with the ice powers that complimented her true form of Famine. After all, how else does one cause famine than to freeze the crops.

"Who cares?" Makoto said with a roll of her eyes. She took her seat by Ami and cracked her knuckles with a small grin on her face. "I say we go down there and test our powers against the Princess. I for one want to take a crack at this new Guardian of hers." No longer powered up as Conquest, Makoto now wore a simple green tee that matched her forest green eyes and a pair of blue jeans.

"No, we still don't know enough," Luna advised sagely. Her eyes closed briefly before she made eye contact with each of her four charges. It was odd considering how self-assured the four were yet they came to her for guidance and advice. Then again she was the one that had found and awoken all of them. "I refuse to lose any of you now to an ill planned move on our part."

"Agreed," Mamoru added with finality in his tone. "We let Beryl scout out this new Senshi. If she is the Guardian to the Princess she will be powerful. We study the losses that Beryl takes and then we adjust a plan to eliminate the threat."

"Luna?" Ami asked a note of hesitation in her voice. "I don't remember just one Guardian for the Princess." She felt an odd jarring at that. It was just a feeling but for some reason four felt right. That of course didn't make sense from what Luna told them when she had awoken. The Moon Kingdom, in an act of aggression, had started an all-out war in the final days of the Silver Millennium. Of course the four inner planets and Prince Endymion from Earth had united together to put down the upstart kingdom of the Moon. This was further confirmed when Luna had restored their memories. "For some reason…I…don't know." A look of distress briefly crossed her face. She hated feeling confused and lost. It was not something she was used to.

Makoto glanced over at Ami before placing her hand over Ami's and gave her a gentle comforting squeeze. She knew that her friend generally overthought situations and tended to ruminate on the smallest details. Due to this she tended to have the worst flashbacks of the group. Flashbacks of things that didn't match up with the memories that Luna unlocked and the ones that showed her actually helping the Moon Kingdom. Of course Ami had shared her concerns and unfortunately the best that Luna could come up with is that Queen Serenity had attempted to turn her enemies into protectors of her daughter. Who better to protect her daughter than those that had tried to kill her? If they died in service of Princess Serenity then Moon Kingdom still won out in the end. "Don't worry Ami, it is just Serenity again. False memories. You are doing the right thing. Remember what they did to your planet. What she did to all of our planets."

Rei nodded in support of Makoto, a small smile resting on her face. "Ami just remember you're the smartest of us all. The one most likely to apply logic and reason to a situation and Queen Serenity must have known this. Just like she targeted Minako's pure heart and Artemis's loyalty to turn them against us, she probably planted memories that she knew would potentially cause you to question your real memories." She herself had her own issues. Visions of the future. She was given visions of a future where she and the other Horsemen were allies of the Queen and it had Mamoru—sometimes with the new Queen Serenity and sometimes with her but none of it made any sense to Rei. She shook her head and found herself subconsciously reaching for Mamoru.

Mamoru shot his lover a small comforting smile before squeezing her hand. She was thinking about those odd visions again. It seemed that Queen Serenity had targeted each of them in their own unique way. Mamoru shot a questioning glance to their cat. "Luna, have you gotten any closer to finding a way to remove these false memories that have been planted in our heads by Queen Serenity?"

Luna shook her head with a slight sigh. A look of regret passed by her face that said she could not help her charges or herself. Their strength had been their close bond once unshakable until Minako and Artemis turned. Now they all worried that one day one of them would be tempted by the memories, each secretly suspicious but unwilling to say it out loud. Even she worried that one day the memories' temptations would be too much. The memories were full of love and comfort, even of friendship with the Princess. "Unfortunately I haven't made any headway on my project but hold strong. We will best her at her own game. We must each be thankful that the Princess did not find us first," Luna said. Luna's thoughts went back to the dark shadow that had awoken her and had given her the mission to awaken the other Horsemen. It had told her of Queen Serenity's plan to turn their power to her own use. Queen Serenity was a shrewd one, that was for sure, but this time her gambit wouldn't pay off. Luna would make sure of it.

"Well I hope you can figure it out soon Luna, it would be good to have Minako back with us. I still can't believe she was so weak," Makoto growled while clenching her fist in anger. It still pissed her off that they had lost their leader and their other mentor. While they had not yet met Minako, or as she liked to call herself in battle "Sailor V", the team leader caused quite a bit of trouble for Beryl.

Ami nodded in support of Makoto's plan before looking to Mamoru who became their defacto leader without Minako around. "Mamoru I believe while it is in our best interest to let Beryl sacrifice her incompetent Shitennou and waste her limited power to find the Moon Princess, we should perhaps take a more proactive approach to finding the Princess ourselves in a way that will not put us in danger."

"What would you propose Ami?" Mamoru raised an eyebrow normally Ami was not one to suggest anything unless it was well thought out. She was not one to rush headlong into something.

The other girls and Luna also looked on with interest at their comrade.

Ami felt a small blush rise to her face at the attention suddenly directed on her by all of her friends. After nervously clearing her throat, she laid out her plan before she froze up from the attention: "We know the Princess to be about our age. It would reason if she is still unaware of her identity then she should be still attending a High School in the area. I propose that each of us attend a different school in the area and attempt to locate the Princess. If we wait a while longer we can use Beryl to narrow down the probable districts that the Princess would be based on where her forces engage this new Guardian. Then each of us will take one of the High Schools in the area. Mamoru, due to your advanced age," she couldn't help a smirk crossing her face at the dirty look the slightly older man gave her before she continued, "You will have to attend a College for cover, but you can be our roaming eye in case we miss anything."

"Hm," Mamoru nodded in agreement of the plan. "I think the idea has some merit, Ami, and we shall go ahead with it. Of course, we shall refine it a bit but for now we should each start working on a civilian identity. Luna, please start working on compiling a list of High Schools in the area of the first encounter with this new Guardian. Beryl will surely get impatient and send out Youma in force shortly to attempt to draw the Guardian out. After we narrow down the probably locations we will pick out the schools most likely to correlate with the location of the Princess's Guardian. Once we find that Guardian we will surely find the Princess."

The group stayed at the table for a little while longer going over the specifics of their plan before breaking apart. Luna disappeared to start gathering the information on the schools. Makoto disappeared to get some physical training in with the Youma on the base loyal to their faction— one would not put it past Beryl to try and kill one of the Four Horsemen in a training "accident" through one of her youmas. And finally Rei disappeared into her room to consult the fire. It left Mamoru alone at the table to ruminate on the meeting and what it may mean that a new Sailor had appeared that none of them remembered.

 

Dark Kingdom –

 

Nephrite stared up at the stars with a frown on his face as he attempted to read the future. Once more nothing specific came back to him and what did come back appeared muddled and disjointed. He could feel a great revival that would occur soon but there was so much chaos involved. The paths available changed by the minute and none seemed to hold sway over another. All he knew was that that damn Jadeite was involved. From what he could read the second youngest Shitennou after Zoisite would be the cause of much of this upheaval.

Then there was the Princess that they currently were trying to find. She was completely obscured by the stars for him. No doubt it was the protection of the Queen that kept any information on her vague. The most he got out was blonde hair, but of course even in Japan that did little to help. A loud bang disrupted his concentration and he watched in frustration as the stars seemed to wink out of existence above him from his observatory. An annoyed frown came to his face upon seeing who had interrupted him. "Zoisite, you know not to interrupt me."

"This is important," Zoisite stressed with a hiss. The man, despite his intelligence, was quick to temper just like Jadeite. But whereas Jadeite could at least hold it in when needed, Zoisite had a tendency to allow his anger rule him. He had just reviewed the information from his scouts and did not like it at all. Not only had that new Senshi terminated his scouts with surprising ease, but that bitch Sailor V had appeared as well.

With a long suffering sigh Nephrite waved his hand to indicate that Zoisite should continue. It would take more time to reconnect with the stars than it was worth for the night now that he had lost connection. "Well get on with it. I know you're just burning up with excitement," He commented sardonically.

"Listen here jackass; I am just trying to help you!" Zoisite responded with a glare. He was in no mood to deal with Nephrite's holier than thou bullshit. The man had the same calm demeanor as Kunzite but whereas Kunzite never let any emotion onto his face or into his words, Nephrite made a game of using biting sarcasm to make his points.

"Fine, fine. So what did your little scouts learn?" Nephrite attempted to keep the boredom out of his voice. He failed. Really, he found it such a waste of time to scout out your opposition. Instead of scouting his enemy out he simply created the strongest Youma he could and sent it out. If it failed the enemy was clearly stronger than he anticipated. If it succeeds then it was a good enough mission accomplished. He put more faith in the guidance of the stars than he did any Youma. The creatures were muscle at best no matter how smart Zoisite claimed them to be. He let a small smirk cross his face when he realized he was getting to Zoisite. The younger Shitennou was practically twitching in rage.

"My little scouts, as you so eloquently put them," Zoisite growled in annoyance. "Confirmed that that little trollup from France has not only followed you here, but appears to have linked up with Jadeite again. To make matters worse, that new Senshi is an actual threat."

"Of course she's a threat," Nephrite rolled his eyes before mocking Zoisite in a condescending tone. "I know this must be hard for you to understand but she is a Sailor Senshi that no one remembers. Clearly she is a Guardian that good old Queen Serenity created to protect her precious daughter. I will send my next Youma down as planned. I will go down personally to observe the battle when the little brat comes to save the day if she is anything like that annoying Sailor V."

"You still aren't listening," Zoisite had to hold himself back from stomping his foot in annoyance. The second Shitennou was notoriously stubborn and rarely took console from anyone other than the damned stars. Zoisite could never understand it but of course whenever he appealed to Kunzite or Beryl they just told him to leave Nephrite be and go about his own business. Of course the main reason Zoisite continued to try to help Nephrite was not because he was a nice person but he knew if Nephrite failed, it would be up to him to clean up the idiot's mess.

"Of course I'm not," Nephrite chuckled before he looked up towards the darkened sky, a faint smile resting on his face. "I only need but to consult the stars to learn my fate and the fate of the Dark Kingdom." Ironically, it was Jadeite that understood him best. The two shared a certain amount of powers in the psychic realm. Whereas he could predict the future to a certain extent and read the past, Jadeite could read people's intentions and emotions. The two used to have discussions of the future and their pasts. The memories that had been unlocked and the holes the two had found. Jadeite had not been satisfied to sit still and had gone out to find the answers whereas Nephrite was content just to read the stars and eventually the answers would come.

"Fine. You know what? Fine," Zoisite said harshly. "You know what? Never mind because you'll see for yourself. See if I ever help you again." With a final huff he turned around and made his way out of the observatory. That insurmountable jackass. He was such a stubborn mule. Zoisite fumed silently as he made his way down the stairs back to the palace proper. The information he had found was disturbing, the final report had made little sense. Where the power level that Sailor V and Jadeite had were fairly stable, this new Guardian had an unstable level that didn't make any sense. One second it was like kindling and the next it turned into what could only be a properly described as a supernova. Their only saving grace seemed to be that the girl had little control over her powers. She transformed only when pressed, but that wouldn't last long. That damn Sailor V would probably teach her everything. With a final growl of annoyance he made his way into his room to work on a new Youma.

Nephrite chuckled when Zoisite left in a huff of anger. He enjoyed pressing the third Shitennou's buttons, it was a past time that he engaged in since he willingly talked to so few people. After a moment of consideration, he glanced up at the stars to obtain some kind of guidance but they had gone dark after Zoisite's interruption. Well he would just have to try a reading tomorrow night after he attempted to draw out the Guardian to truly assess her powers. With one last look to the sky he walked out of the observatory to continue his plan for tomorrow night's activity. There was a carnival in town that would draw many people. It would be a perfect time to surreptitiously gather energy without anyone being the wiser.

 

Earth –

"You're Sailor V," Usagi cried with admiration. She dreamed of meeting Sailor V ever since the newspapers first started mentioning her. Every article, comic, and movie that had been released—including the super-secret first edition special of Sailor V in Bermuda—Usagi owned it all. It was almost like a dream come true, Sailor V appeared right in front of her and even rescued her! "I can't believe you saved me!"

"Yeah, there certainly wasn't anyone else there holding off two Youma that would have shredded you into pieces, that's for sure," Jadeite muttered. This was just like France all over again. He was always relegated to Sailor V's side kick no matter how instrumental he was during a fight. It wasn't that he was petty, he was just tired of always being the third wheel. That was it. It was like being part of some messed up relationship between Sailor V and the Youma where he was the best friend that was getting ignored.

"Oh, don't be such a drama queen," Usagi said. She offhandedly slapped Jadeite playfully never taking her eyes off of the heroine Sailor V.

"Don't worry about Jadeite, he can be quite a stick in the jello as they say," Sailor V laughed aloud. It was a good thing she had been working with Jadeite so long. She had felt the power that this new Sailor Senshi was putting out in her civilian form but thought nothing of it. There were some extraordinarily powerful humans that were in touch with their chi, usually through martial arts or spiritual powers. It had been when Jadeite's power signature suddenly showed up when he transformed that alerted her. The man despite his playful nature in his civilian form rarely went to his Shitennou form without good reason. She flashed a playful smile at the man who currently had a displeased look on his face as if he had just eaten something rotten. "Nice to see you again, too, Jed."

"It's stick in the mud," a voice came from the tree branches above. There was a long suffering quality to the tone as if it was fighting a losing battle but persisted anyway. A moment later a white cat with a golden crescent moon marking adorning its forehead dropped out of the trees and landed in front of Minako. The cat had a certain intelligence in its eyes that no animal should have. It almost appeared to be dissecting the two before he turned to Jadeite and raised an eyebrow in question. "I don't remember her from before…"

"Don't call me Jed, V. I am not a hillbilly from America," Jadeite replied bitterly. He felt one of his eyebrows starting to twitch. If there was one constant with Minako, it was that dealing with her was a colossal pain in the ass and testament to one's patience. He welcomed the chance to speak with the fleabag even if Artemis pissed him off just as often as Minako to be quite honest. Still, when he hurled insults at the damn cat they didn't go over his head.

"Well I don't know either. I rescued her last night and then she did this," Jadeite said and waved towards the entire Sailor Senshi uniform made of armor and sword. "My best guess is she is one of you. Did you ever have a Moon themed member?"

"You're a talking cat," Usagi's mind finally caught up with what she was seeing. At first she thought she was just seeing things but there was legitimately a talking cat. And Jadeite was talking to it as if this was a common occurrence. She grabbed onto one of Jadeite's sleeves and tugged on it eagerly, earning a hard glare from the Shitennou for interrupting his train of thought. Usagi was too engrossed by her concern to worry about Jadeite's personal space. "Why is there a talking cat?"

Artemis huffed in indignation, "I am a very important cat thank you very much. I am the personal advisor and guardian to the Sailor Senshi I'll have you know. My duty was entrusted to me by Queen Serenity and I take it very seriously."

"But there's only Sailor V. You can't be that important with only one person to advise," Usagi pointed out automatically before realizing what she said. She covered her mouth with her hand. A slight blush rose to her face at the faux pas. It wasn't exactly nice to point out to someone that their job was perhaps not as important as they thought it was. Still it was a talking cat and it was kinda weird to give a cat a job like that. Couldn't this Queen have found something a little better than a cat? Maybe like an advisor tiger. Not only would a tiger be cooler, it sounded like a hip financial firm name.

"Wha!" Artemis attempted to come up with a defense but he ended up huffing in indignation and attempted to sort himself out. He certainly had not expected to be questioned by what was clearly a Sailor Senshi and one under his jurisdiction.

"Yeah, she does have a point." Minako said a finger pressed to her lips in thought over the issue. "Shouldn't you have more Senshi to advise?"

"Yes Artemis it does raise… certain questions about your usefulness," Jadeite cut in with a victorious smirk. He had been fighting with the damn cat since he had met him about the questionable things the cat advised. Seriously, sometimes he didn't think the little white fleabag was fully engaged with reality. Somehow the damn cat thought the enemy would fight fairly and not try anything underhanded in their attempt to defeat Sailor V. It had ended with Sailor V almost buying the farm more than once. Much to his chagrin the girl continued to listen to the annoying fleabag.

"Well there should be a Sailor Senshi for each of the inner planets except Earth," Artemis huffed indignantly. Really to be questioned by a new Sailor Senshi about his importance? A small part of him wondered when Luna had rubbed off on him so much. The black cat was usually the uptight one of the pair. Since their split he found his normally carefree attitude had taken a backseat to the stress of trying to locate the missing girls that had disappeared with Luna to the Dark Kingdom. "Unfortunately, just like the other Shitennou they were turned to help the Dark Kingdom with the help of that Lord Death."

"Aww don't worry Artemis, you're important to me," Minako said with a small smile. She picked the put-off cat up and snuggled him to her chest. Artemis was reasonably mollified by her actions and may have been starting to feel a little better if Minako didn't finish her thought. "Besides without you who would dust the really high places in my room that I can't reach."

"Sometimes I truly wonder what I'm doing here," Artemis let out a defeated sigh. Perhaps it would just have been better to stay ignorant to the truth. Even as evil brainwashed versions of themselves, the other Senshi would at least appreciate him for more than as a furry duster.

"So…you think…umm…I could get you to sign some of my Sailor V comics? I have every single one of them and I have every article about you," Usagi said not all interested in the little cat's emotional wellbeing. Besides, now that she had reconciled the talking cat issue she was more interested in the celebrity in front of her. Usagi slapped Jadeite across the chest when she heard a snort of derision come from him. Really the boy had no sense of priorities.

Jadeite cut Minako off before she could respond. He really hated being the only responsible one here unless you counted Artemis. Which he didn't. He needed Usagi to be able transform on command and so far the throwing her into the deep end solution didn't seem work. As much as he didn't want to admit it, the easiest thing would be to get Minako to help. "Usa you can deal with your obsession on your own time but we need V and…Artemis here to help." He turned his eyes to Minako imploringly. "She is clearly some sort of Senshi and doesn't even have any idea how to transform unless she is under duress. I need you to help with that."

Artemis and Minako glanced at each other and seemed to have a private conversation not so much in words but small motions. Finally it appeared that Artemis had decided that they would help after Minako turned her pleading eyes to him. The small white cat huffed once in defeat before turning his attention to Usagi and Jadeite. "We'll help, but I don't know how much we can really do. Our main priority remains finding the Princess and while she clearly isn't fighting for the Dark Kingdom, we don't have time to run a boot camp for someone that may not even be part of the Senshi."

"Artemis," Minako hissed in annoyance. He could be such a pain in her ass. She turned her attention back to the two after one final glare at the rude little cat. "What he is trying to say is that we still must keep searching for our princess as our top priority. She is the only one that can truly restore the memory of the Silver Millennium to the other Senshi," Minako shot a comforting smile at Usagi's wilting stature at her words. She raised a finger. "But we have tracked the Princess to this area and we could use a helping hand. So we'll help you if you promise to help us find the Princess."

"Sure of course!" Usagi responded instantly. She thought that it was going to be a no but it turned out instead she was going to be trained by her idol! This was possibly the best news she could ever hope for. In fact, she was practically on cloud nine. Alright they were going on about some weird things like that Silver Millennium thingy and sure she still really didn't want to fight. She probably would have continued fighting Jadeite on the whole thing and asked for him to somehow repress her power so she didn't have to fight but this was an exception. To be taught to fight by her idol and role model! There was no way she would say no to this, that was for sure.

"Just remember, you also need to help me find my King," Jadeite prompted with a small glare at Minako. Really how could Minako put such restrictions on Usagi in order to agree to train her? She was one of them anyway even if none of them could remember their existence. He mentally sidestepped the whole issue that he had more or less imposed the same demand on Usagi in exchange for helping her in the first place.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll help both of you find your lost Royalty," Usagi groused, silently bemoaning the fact that neither of them could keep track of their own Royalty and now she would be stuck with both of them. Helping Sailor V would be awesome and her eyes practically sparkled in excitement. The problem was that it meant she would continue to spend time with Jadeite.

"Well I propose we meet tomorrow and start training. Then we can figure out some kind of plan to find the Princess," Artemis said. He glanced at Jadeite before adding in the last part almost begrudgingly. "And your King."

"But the carnival is tomorrow night," Usagi whined. There was no way she would miss something as awesome as the large carnival that was coming to town that weekend. Sure she could go Saturday and maybe Sunday but Friday had some of the coolest shows. It would be a shame to miss it because Jadeite and Artemis were being unreasonable about her social life.

"Oh a carnival! I say we meet here tomorrow after school and then go to the carnival!" Minako cried in excitement that looked more ridiculous since she was still appeared as Sailor Venus. She saw that Usagi seemed all too willing to agree with her but from the looks on the faces of Jadeite and Artemis they did not exactly agree. She coughed slightly. Perhaps a compromise was in order. If she didn't offer one quickly Artemis and Jadeite would straight up override Usagi and her. "Umm right…er we can meet here after school and do some training…theeeeeen we can go to the carnival?"

"Fine," Jadeite quickly agreed before Minako could try to weasel any more concessions out of him in the name of compromise. The girl was devious that was for sure. There had been more than one time in France where he had been cajoled into going shopping with her in the name of discussing common goals. Then shopping turned into lunch…and then dinner…and then a movie. He ended up paying for all of it.

"Right! We'll meet here tomorrow then!" Usagi agreed with a smile. She wasn't exactly happy about having to do what she considered work on a Friday night but with the promise of the carnival afterwards how could she not agree. Her mentor being there also seemed to help things.

"Well then. We'll be off. See you tomorrow!" With a final wave Sailor V disappeared with her white cat and advisor riding on her shoulder. It left Jadeite and Usagi alone to wander back to Usagi's house. Jadeite ever being the gentleman—or more likely he refused to lose what was essentially the only thing that could easily defeat the Youma—escorted her home.

"I can't believe I got to meet Sailor V in person," Usagi practically screamed in excitement. Her voice took on a shrill tone as she attempted to contain herself. While on the way out of the park her powers had once again disappeared upon her basically willing them away. "She is so cool."

"Yeah, I wouldn't get too excited," Jadeite glanced over at Usagi and rolled his eyes seeing her glare. He let out a long suffering sigh. "Believe me, after working with her for two years you'll find she has her faults. And don't forget that you have those same powers now."

"You're such a downer!" She rolled her eyes at Jadeite's comments. Really couldn't he try to remember that her happiness was what was important? Besides, he needed her not the other way around. She put her arms behind her back and clasped them together as she started fantasizing about working with Sailor V. "Ya think I'll get a talking cat so I can be more like Sailor V?"

"I hope not," Jadeite responded with a slight shudder. There was no way he could deal with a second talking cat. Two years of dealing with Artemis in France was enough for a life time. If he had to handle that annoying fleabag and a second one he'd probably lose it. He glanced over at Usagi. "So you seem to have had a change of heart about this whole fighting dark creatures and finding lost royalty thing. I would have thought you'd have more questions like where we came from and what we're doing, not to mention the whole past memories thing," He tentatively floated the questions he had been holding in since her change of heart on the whole matter. It was almost like she had completely changed from the night before. He had his suspicions. Nothing was that easy especially how hard she was fighting it.

"Hm…" Usagi hummed a little before looking up towards the stars twinkling overhead. "Well…I guess…" She trailed off for a moment before looking back to Jadeite with a slight blush before she practically exploded in excitement. "It's just I get to actually train with Sailor V! I mean this whole business can't be that bad if I am working with my idol! Just think of the movie contracts! Of course I'll have to think up a cool name. I can't just copy the whole Sailor thing she has going on or else people will think I'm a copycat and I'm no copycat. I mean I don't even have her outfit and I got that cool sword!"

Jadeite had to keep his hands to his sides to keep them from clenching and unclenching. In fact he could feel his eyebrow starting to tic. He couldn't believe how immature her outlook was. That was all it took to convince her that this was a good call? Not his demands that she train to help him or protect her family. No, it was the chance to work with Minako. A dubious honor at best as far as he was concerned. He attempted to keep the seething tone out of his voice. He should just be happy she had changed her mind but this was seriously ticking him off. "So, you're not at all worried about anything. Nothing like a past kingdom on the Moon and other planets, lost royalty or missing memories from a past life?"

"Not really my problem," Usagi waved off Jadeite's points as if they were of no concern. "I mean what you guys believe in is all on you guys. As long as I'm trained by Sailor V and go on missions with her I'm good." Really she had kind of spaced out when Jadeite started in on the whole past life thing and all that nonsense. It just didn't interest her that much. Super powers? Check. Kickass Outfit? Check. A super cool leader? Check. She was content as far as she was concerned.

"Your shortsightedness never fails to astound me despite the short time I've known you," Jadeite grumbled. He was going to bring up the point of the talking cat but he figured at this point she had more or less clocked out and was only thinking about Sailor V. He was debating bringing up another issue with her to try and see the seriousness of the entire thing but she interrupted him.

"Well this is my house!" Usagi cried out shattering the momentary silence that the two had shared. Usagi had been fantasizing about saving handsome boys with Sailor V much as Jadeite had mentally postulated and Jadeite was simply cursing his entire existence.

"Thank god for small miracles," He muttered on under his breath.

"Well I'll see you tomorrow at school I guess?" Usagi ventured with a slight questioning look and a raise of her eyebrow.

"Yeah, I'll be there. Just remember to tell your parents you are staying late for some tutoring and then going to the carnival. We are meeting Sailor V right after school," Jadeite reminded her. Last thing he needed was to be interrupted by a search party. With how spastic her father seemed to be it wouldn't be out of the question.

Usagi nodded before turning around and walking towards the house. Right as she got to the door a thought occurred to her and she turned back to Jadeite. She almost felt a chill go down her spin when she met his eyes. There was a certain intensity to them that sometimes scared the shit out of her. After shaking the odd feeling off, Usagi called out to Jadeite. "You're coming right? To the carnival, I mean."

After a moment's pause he just nodded back to her before he quickly turned and left. He needed to get back to his apartment and meditate. Ever since he met up with Usagi, he had been neglecting his duties. Just because he had found a girl that could kill Youma easily did not mean he'd magically find his King without actually putting in some work on his end as well.

Usagi watched Jadeite until he was out of view. A small smile crossed her face. Jadeite was a hard read for her. One moment he was demanding and intense. The next moment he was laid back and easy going. She wondered which one was the real Jadeite and which one had been born out of circumstance. With a shake of her head she opened the door and announced her arrival home. "I'm back!"

"How was your tutoring session dear?" Ikuko called from the kitchen.

"Fine, Mom!" Usagi called back while trudging towards the stairs. She was almost up the stairs when she remembered to tell her mother about tomorrow. Instead of walking all the way down, she decided to just yell down. It was easier and honestly she was tired after tonight. All this running around and killing crazy creatures was for the birds. If not for Sailor V, she would have told Jadeite to stuff it that was for sure. "Hey Mom! I umm… got a tutoring session again tomorrow right after school and then I'm going to the carnival with a friend!"

"Oh!" Ikuko called out from downstairs a smile crossing her face before she stuck her tongue out at her husband who was sitting at the kitchen table doing his evening crossword. "Are you going with Jadeite?" She called out with a certain amount of glee. Oh the wedding bells were in the air and there was no way she'd let Kenji ruin this. She wanted her son-in-law dammit and Jadeite met all her requirements.

"Yes," Usagi called out uncertainly before adding on. "I'm also going with another friend of his though and Naru will probably be there too!"

The furious scribbling of the crossword puzzle stopped as Kenji accidently snapped his pencil from holding it too hard. A slight twitch caused his eyebrow to jump. After a moment he couldn't contain himself any longer. "I don't want you out with that boy unless it is for tutoring! This isn't a gang initiation is it?!"

"What?! NO!" Usagi called back down the stairs in a huff. Sometimes her dad was way too over protective. It was kind of nice in middle school when all boys were jerks, but now it was getting ridiculous. She didn't want to bring a boy home and have him chased off by her Dad acting crazy. "I'm going to bed and it isn't a date! Or a gang initiation."

"Kenji. Seriously. I worry about your heart. You can't get so stressed out about this," Ikuko lectured her husband while absently tapping a wooden stirring spoon against her hand. "Our little girl is growing up and you're going to have to get used to her going out with boys and maybe even finding her future husband."

"But…" Kenji attempted to establish some sort of defense but one glance down at his snapped pencil and he realized he couldn't come up with anything that made sense. "Well, she is just my little girl and I'm having a little trouble adjusting. Shingo is going to be starting High School in a year and Usa is a Junior. Soon she will be off to College or working—Lord help whoever employs her—and I just...I'm feeling old."

Ikuko favored him with a sympathetic smile. She could understand where her husband was coming from. She had felt the same way over the years. With the kids more or less out of her hair she had gone back to school to obtain her Masters. A sly smile crossed her face. "You know we could always have another. I don't think we're that old…" She trailed off with a slight waggle of her eyebrows.

Kenji clutched his chest dramatically and let out a long suffering sigh. "Are you trying to kill me? I don't think I could survive another one."

Ikuko reached out with the wooden spoon and tapped her husband on the head. "Good because I am not going through that again for you no matter how many pretty diamonds you buy me." She turned her attention back to the lunches she was fixing for the entire family again. "Just remember dear. We met around her age and we had Usagi soon after."

That effectively silenced Kenji. The man knew that to answer in any way that could possibly be taken as implying that they had had Usagi too early would end up with him on the sofa for the next three weeks or more. Instead he just grunted in agreement and went back to his crossword. After seventeen years of marriage he knew when to pick his battles and this was not only a battle he'd lose but a probably sentencing to the sofa for the foreseeable future if he pursued the subject further.

Usagi once again had odd dreams during the night. There were some oddly dressed girls there that she felt some kind of connection to but she had never met them in her life. Certain parts of her dreams almost felt more like memories. There were scenes of her as a young child with silver hair running through a beautiful garden to her mother, but it wasn't Ikuko. Instead it was a silver haired woman. Together they looked up and stared at the Earth in the distance, but that didn't make sense. Thankfully she was released from her dreams once more by her alarm clock and her younger brother bringing her back to the world of the living.

The school day thankfully passed quickly enough. Jadeite had his personal harem following him around from the start of the day to the end of the day. Most of the day for Usagi was spent with Naru who thankfully didn't drag her over to Jadeite again after Usage explained that Jadeite was, in fact, her new tutor. She hated lying to her friend but it wasn't exactly like she had a choice in the matter. Jadeite would probably kill her and then Sailor V wouldn't be able to train her since you can't exactly train a corpse. It was shortly after three in the afternoon when the pair arrived in the secluded area of the park that they had agreed upon yesterday.

When they arrived a young woman with a red ribbon holding her long blond hair back was already there. She could've been a model if not for the fact that she didn't have the height normally associated with one. A white cat lounged over her right shoulder with his head down and eyes closed. It'd be an odd sight for Usagi if not for the fact she had transformed into an armored magical warrior and had witness a monster trying to kill her. Not once, but twice.

"Minako," Jadeite greeted with an easy going smile once he got close enough to greet her without yelling halfway across the park. "Thank you for meeting us here."

"No problem!" Minako responded in a bubbly voice. She was honestly quite excited about the prospect of a new Senshi even if she couldn't remember her ever existing. Of course Artemis had been his normal paranoid self but she had waved off his concerns. The girl transformed and killed monsters. Was there really any need for further concern? Not as far as Minako was concerned. She smiled brightly at Usagi before turning her attention back to Jadeite. "Thought you got rid of me when you left France, didn't ya?"

Usagi stood behind Jadeite not quite sure what to say. Meeting your hero for the first time in person and not right after you were in a life and death situation….what should she even say? She attempted to figure out something but anything she thought up just sounded stupid and inane. She wisely kept her mouth shut as her mother always told her: it was better to stay quiet and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and confirm it.

"The thought crossed my mind," Jadeite responded with a laugh. "Not that I don't appreciate your help, but I thought you were picking up your Princesses signature in France when I left."

"Well, I was but then the oddest thing happened and an energy source that matched the Princesses signature just appeared in the Tokyo area. Naturally by the time we got here it completely disappeared." Minako laughed nervously herself. "So…here we are."

"You lost the signal then. I thought you had that sophisticated energy sensor that could track down your Princess's energy no matter how weak it was?" Jadeite questioned with a slight raise of an eyebrow.

The blush that appeared on her face was all he needed to see to know that somehow the klutz destroyed or lost the sensor. The only question was how. Minako mumbled something unintelligible under her breath.

"What was that?"

"I said I may have kinda… sorta… uh, broke it," Minako responded with a beat red face.

"What she means is that she forgot it was in her jeans pocket and washed it. Then as if that wasn't enough, she fried it completely by putting it in the dryer," Artemis said with a sigh of annoyance. Being partnered up with Minako was a true testament to his patience. Despite his urge to claw her eyes out he had managed to restrain himself. Barely.

"Well as fun as it would be to hear more about Minako's destruction of fragile artifacts and technology we will probably never see again," Jadeite said before Minako could get on a roll. He knew if those two started bickering they'd be here all night. "I'd like to actually get to the point of our meeting." He stepped aside and swept his hand towards his ward for lack of a better term. "I ran into her two nights ago when a Youma decided to make her a tasty energy source. Just like last night she transformed under duress but she hasn't been able to transform on her own. I was hoping you'd have some idea."

"Hm…well have you tried calling on the power of the Moon?" Artemis questioned. "Based on what I saw last night it would be the most logical option. All the other planets have their own Senshi already and Earth never had one."

"Already tried that," Jadeite shook his head with a slight frown. "No go."

"Well, maybe she needs to name her transformation." Minako pointed out helpfully.

"That's completely ridiculous," Jadeite groused. "There is no way her issue was that she did not appropriately name her transformation and that is why she can't transform."

"Nothing else has worked," Usagi retorted before sticking out her tongue. She finally got the gumption up to speak. Truthfully she was tired of the three of them talking about her like she wasn't even there. "I'm going to try it! I even thought up a cool name to go with my whole armor and sword theme!" Usagi practically squealed in excitement. The idea had come to her in the middle of study hall today and she thought it was just about the best thing ever.

"Great. Go ahead." Jadeite made a shooing motion as if to distance himself from the whole mess. Sometimes Minako came up with the craziest ideas and that was saying something when he took into account Usagi's propensity to spit out complete word vomit in the form of "reasoning". He could only hope that it wasn't as terrible as he feared it would be.

"I wasn't going to wait for your permission anyway!" Usagi stuck her tongue out at Jadeite before cupping her hands together around the miniature sword that was attached to the silver chain. "Lunar! Sailor! Power!" She called out making sure to clearly annunciate each and every word. In a burst of light Usagi quickly transformed from her school girl uniform into the armored version of a Sailor Senshi.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me. It actually worked," Jadeite grumbled in disbelief. The fact that something Minako had thought up worked was cause for concern. Yet here they were. Usagi was fully transformed and was currently waving her sword around in victory.

"I did it! I can't believe I did it!" Usagi cried in excitement. She could actually transform without nearly dying from some creepy creature trying to kill her. "Bwhahaha! I am the Lunar Ronin!" She crowed in victory with a large smile on her face.

"I knew I was a genius!" Minako cheered her on with a fist pump into the air that ruffled Artemis. The cat merely readjusted himself with a slight huff and a half assed glare in Minako's general direction.

"That is so stupid," Jadeite groused. "Ronin doesn't even make sense."

"Sure it does!" Usagi stuck her tongue out and blew a raspberry. "Ronin means without a master and I definitely don't have a Princess, King, or any other royalty that I have to find."

"She's got a point," Minako said with a finger to her lips in thought.

"I don't care if she's got ten points," Jadeite rolled his eyes. "I don't run around attaching stupid titles to my name."

"Oh yeah cause Sailor Ronin sounds so much worse than what was it again…" Usagi trailed off in mock thought before raising her finger and continued in a sarcastic tone. "Oh that's right, the Shitennou of the Eastern Empire and holder of the flames of purity…or some boring drivel close to that am I right?"

Jadeite was about to make another snide remark when he felt a sudden pulse coming from the direction of the carnival. Of course. The carnival was perfect for Beryl with all those people gathered. Especially if she needed energy fast. Not only that, but the pulse of power felt familiar. Nephrite. Clearly the turned Shitennou was requesting their presence and if Nephrite was expecting them it meant trouble. He glanced over to Minako to see if she had sensed it to only to see her little wand already out. "Well looks like you get to keep your stupid name. As much as I'd love to argue the point further it appears Nephrite just sent us an invitation to the carnival."

"Wait, you mean actively go towards danger?" Usagi said with a shrill tone of disbelief. "I'm not even trained! I need some kind of training before I actively run towards danger!" She couldn't believe these people! They actually wanted to go towards what was surely a dangerous situation?

"Consider it training on the job," Minako pointed out helpfully before she twirled her wand around. That was all the warning that Artemis had to vacate from Minako's shoulder. Unfortunately it wasn't enough and the white cat was sent sailing through the air with a strangled meow when the burst of power pushed out from Minako. She started to glow and held her wand up before bringing it around in an intricate dance. "Venus! Star! Power!"

"Should I start transforming like that too?" Usagi questioned as she and Jadeite stood there while Minako continued to glow and twirl around in what appeared to be an intricate interpretative dance.

"Not if you don't want a Youma to kick you half way through your transformation. Not that she would know about that," Jadeite muttered darkly before he slammed his fists together to start his own powerful transformation. "Flames of the Eastern Empire! Aid me now in my time of need!" He ended with a shout before disappearing in a column of fire. Once more the blast of fire disappeared as quickly as it was called forth and he stepped forward in his Shitennou uniform his black katana already formed in his hands. "And that is how you transform. Efficient. Quick. And nowhere near as showy as whatever that is," He gestured to Minako who had finally completed her transformation into Sailor Venus.

"I am Sailor Venus! Protector of lo-"

"This is getting stupid," Jadeite cut in before Minako could finish her battle speech. He didn't have time for this. Whatever Nephrite was up to wasn't going to be good. The man wasn't a Shitennou without a reason and the longer they dilly-dallied the more time Nephrite had for preparation. "Save your speech for the general public."

"Aww, but I had a really good one!" Minako whined childishly before sticking her tongue out at Jadeite. "You're never any fun! It is like you thrive on boredom. Come on, this job is stressful enough without you! And you make speeches, too! Those who live in glass houses should flock together, you know!"

"Some warning next time, Minako," Artemis growled as he finally came back out of the bushes with little twigs matted into his fur and tree sap stuck in it as well. He didn't appear happy about his unplanned flight through the trees and shrubbery.

"Yeah, yeah. Next time! We gotta go save the world now!" Minako cried out before she jumped away towards the carnival.

"Finally," Jadeite muttered before following suit with Usagi close in tow behind him. The duo quickly caught up to Minako as they left the tree line and started to use the buildings to cover the distance at a faster clip. Even without the bright lights the carnival was easy to find with the screams coming forth. The people still awake and alert were disbursing from the area in droves. The group landed on a small building that overlooked the carnival.

Their target was obvious. It looked like a demented circus clown and all around it there were people scattered haphazardly. They all looked like they could be sleeping if not for the paleness of their faces.

"That's it! I'm going to knock the socks off of this guy!" Minako growled before she jumped down to confront the Youma.

"Such a pleasure to work with such a mature person," Jadeite commented dryly before following suit with a long suffering sigh of annoyance.

Usagi glanced down at the two as they landed in front of the Youma. Sailor V started to give her speech about love and justice while Jadeite just looked bored with the whole ordeal. Despite their differences the two carried a certain amount of confidence that she didn't know if she could emulate enough to even fake it. She was just about to take a deep breath and join them when a voice with a deep timber to it interrupted her.

"So, this is the threat that has caused us so much trouble?" Nephrite interrupted with a sneer. Really she looked like an armored version of that annoying Sailor V. This girl would be no trouble for him to handle right here and now. Normally he was very careful with his plans when the stars demanded it but the stars had given him no guidance. No thanks to that annoying Zoisite. "Although the others would prefer to toy with you, I believe I will kill you right now before you become a true threat to our cause."

"I'm no threat I swear!" Usagi held her hands up in a gesture of nonviolence with her sword held loosely in her right hand. What was with these murderous creeps? They had it all totally wrong. She just wanted to be a super heroine and fight with Sailor V; she didn't actually want to get into a murderous situation.

"Your elimination of three Youma says differently. Now tell me where the Princess is hidden," Nephrite yelled as he formed his lightning halberd in his two hands before he charged the small girl before him. Right as he got within range, he brought the weapon skillfully around, already charging it with electricity.

Usagi just managed to duck away from the sparking halberd. A look of fear crossing her face, she suddenly realized for once this was for real and help wasn't coming. A quick glance to the scene below where it appeared that Jadeite and Sailor V were having quite the challenge of their own with the circus clown. Minako was tied up in balloons while Jadeite was try to cut and burn through them for her. Usagi turned her attention back to Nephrite just in time to catch his halberd with her sword. The strike caused a ringing sensation throughout her arm and up into her shoulder. It was only through concentration that she managed to keep the weapon in her hand. She grabbed the hilt with her other hand and managed to twist the giant blade away. "I don't know where this Princess is! Ask Sailor V!"

"Don't play stupid. It demeans the both of us," Nephrite responded calmly as he swung his halberd around before jutting it out in front of him and letting loose a bolt of lightning. It struck Usagi in the chest. He laughed darkly as he watched the armored Senshi go flying back with a giant burn mark on her chest plate now. Steam was still rose from her chest plate and the girl was coughing something fierce from the blow. He calmly walked over while she was still recovering and placed his boot down onto her chest. A grim smile adorned his face. "You are the Guardian of the Moon Princess. Now reveal her location to me," he said and charged up an orb of electricity in his free hand while moving the point of the halberd to Usagi's exposed neck.

-

Jadeite once again danced around another balloon that was attempting to ensnare him and once more he let loose a torrent of flame that caused the rubber to pop. It left a rather noxious odor behind. He conjured a whip of fire and lashed out laterally bisecting many of the rubber balloons that were attempting to suck his energy dry. With a growl he pushed forward and made it to Minako before freeing her with a controlled burst of fire down the edge of his sword. "Do me a favor. No more stupid inane speeches," he growled before he spun them both away out of range of a dart that the Youma threw at them.

"Yes Dad," Minako commented dryly before quickly forming her chain out of her own energy and swinging it at the Youma. "Venus Love-Me Chain!" She cried out as she managed to get the chain wrapped around the creature's midsection. Minako shot Jadeite a confident grin right before the creature grabbed the chain and yanked Sailor Venus towards him.

"Silly Sailor, you just don't know how to have fun," the creature grinned before he snapped the chain and formed a giant rubber balloon out of thin air. With that, it encapsulated Sailor V in the balloon. It giggled aloud before waving at Sailor V as she started to float away from the helium that was injected into the balloon.

Minako realized she was in trouble the moment she started to float away. She couldn't get a full breath and her lungs started to heave in an attempt to gather what little oxygen that was left in the balloon into her body. She quickly fell to her knees gasping and attempted to form a crescent beam attack to bust out of the balloon but was too weak to form the attack. All she could get was a small spark of power that died all too quickly. It wasn't the first time she had been in a life or death situation, but this time Jadeite wasn't there to save her. She could see the trouble he was in without her being a concern.

Jadeite glanced up at Minako floating well above him now and growled in anger. He attempted to raise his hand to shoot a spout of fire in order to free his comrade, but the Youma struck first. A giant ball of sticky rubber hit his raised hand so hard that it caused him to spin as it solidified and a moment later it was stuck to the wall of a nearby building. He was about to try to free himself but the creature hit his other hand and both feet with three more bursts of rubber.

"Time for you to cool off," The Youma giggled at its own joke. "Why don't you take a deep breathe because you're about to be deficient on oxygen," it cackled before it blew one last giant bubble of rubber out that encased Jadeite's head in the thick rubber. It was the same that covered his mouth and nose completely. The creature stepped back to admire its handiwork with a grin. Sailor V was currently losing the battle to remain concise in the middle of the air and Jadeite would soon join her in asphyxiating.

A/N: And here is where we leave them. I know a cliff hanger I'm evil bwhaha. I will probably be taking some time to update some of my other stories but hey as it goes with most authors my attention primarily goes to what is getting review so don't be surprised if I am inspired to continue with this piece of work. I am going to try to keep most chapters at about this length. Make sure to thank Fleury's Apprentice70 for helping smooth out this entire story from here on out. I really appreciate it myself since I am more an idea guy than a presentation guy. Anyway until next time.

 

 


	4. A Night at the Carnival part 2

A/N: I know I should pay attention to some of my other stories but this one has really been a lot of fun to write so yeah once more here we go. I am going to be trying to incorporate some realism into the Japanese Police Force and I am also going to attempt to use vehicles and rankings the Japanese Police Force actually uses. So basically excuse this American's attempt to make this work…damnit. I also finally figured out what to do with some of the Outers. Finally we start out with an OC. I know most people hate them and despise their presence but I am hoping you people tolerate this one and he will be the only OC you will see much of. Any other OCs in this story will be minor at best.

 

Chapter 4: A night at the carnival part II

Sergeant Gavin Kent sat idly in his Subaru Legacy. In his one hand was a cigarette that he tapped absentmindedly on the edge of the open window. With his other hand he flipped through the reports to go over. A glance up from his work showed a rather mundane scene. The sun wouldn't set for another three hours which meant people were out enjoying the extended day light: children ran to get to their destinations with their parents dutifully keeping pace, teenagers walked in large groups with no real destination in mind, and young couples strolled around in the city before heading to their dinner reservations. It was a normal Friday in April there in Japan. No, he couldn't complain about his business currently for at least he hadn't gotten stuck on carnival duty.

With the carnival in town a lot of officers were stuck policing the area to make sure the more rowdy teens didn't cause trouble. It was also just preemptive to place the emergency responders in the vicinity due to increased possibilities for emergencies at these kinds of events. The officer snorted at the thought of the misfortune some of his friends were currently suffering before absently taking another drag of his cigarette and blew the smoke out the window. An unfortunate habit he had picked up while serving in the United States Military.

He held dual citizenship coming from a Japanese mother who had married his American father while he was stationed over in Japan, though it was hard to tell he was mixed heritage as he favored his father in appearance. Tall at over six feet, built like a tank and with dark blue eyes that were almost black, the only feature that he received from his mother was his neatly trimmed black hair.

One would certainly call him an oddity and his path to getting here was just as strange. After serving with the Military as part of the ground troops in Iraq, he decided to return to his mother's native land to learn more about his Japanese heritage and stumbled into a job he loved while exploring the country. He needed an income so he had joined the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and then was accepted into the experimental and controversial counter-terrorism unit on par with the Self Defense Force's Special Forces. He was one of the few officers on the force that was armed with a gun at all times for fast response. After seeing that global terrorism was on the rise, it was decided that Tokyo needed a hard hitting unit that could respond to a situation until the Self-Defense Force could respond with heavy weaponry.

He chuckled a bit wondering if there was even a point to his station in the counter-terrorism unit. From what he had seen here in Japan the chances of terrorists spreading their message to the Japanese people was slim. The culture was fairly exclusive to foreigners and even he had issues since he was not fully Japanese.

The radio crackled to life. "All units near the Asakusa district respond to Tokyo Carnival." The voice paused a moment before continuing on in the calm tone that only a seasoned dispatcher could keep in the face of the information. "Reported attack at the carnival with unknown casualties. We are having a hard time reaching officers on the ground but we do have confirmed officers down."

"Shit," Sergeant Kent muttered. He double clicked his mic for a moment to request channel priority before responding to the dispatcher. "This is Sergeant Kent, responding." With a regretful look he tossed the half-finished cigarette out the window and onto the street. He similarly tossed the reports he was going over into the passenger seat and started up the turbo charged four cylinder Legacy and flipped on the lights and siren. With a quick look to make sure he was clear he floored it and took off down the street. He skillfully dodged around the heavy traffic that seemed to be present no matter what time of day even with the ample public transportation.

If he hadn't been given the location of the incident by command he would have found it easily enough that was for sure. Just ahead there were streams of people rushing out of the area. The police that had been on hand at the event were currently trying to provide some form of crowd control but it was a losing battle. He parked himself as near as he dared to the evacuating civilians. After parking he quickly turned the siren off but left the flashing red and blue lights on to keep some idiot driver from hitting his car. He once more clicked his mic before speaking through the system. "Sergeant Kent, I am on scene at the South side of the carnival, updates?" He demanded gruffly. He rarely wasted words with pleasantries or additional descriptors as it tended to just confuse people.

After a minute of waiting the dispatcher came back. "Sergeant Kent, reports are of a possible terrorist armed with unknown weaponry. The Superintendent-General Hitoshi Saeki has authorized activation of the counter-terrorism division. Officer Tenou will be arriving shortly to assist."

"Acknowledged," Gavin responded before he pulled himself out of the car, popping the trunk in the process. He made his way around the car trying not to grumble too much about his back up. Tenou was a hardnosed young woman that was tenacious, argumentative, cocky, and impulsive to the point she ran into situations before fully assessing them. She reminded him exactly of a younger version of himself and Kent took it upon himself to work on kicking those very traits out of her one way or another.

While he ruminated over his back up he lifted the trunk the rest of the way and grabbed the dark blue bullet proof vest with the Tokyo Metro Police symbol emblazoned in gold on the upper right corner of the vest. He quickly secured the vest to his body before pulling out the matching forearm pieces and shin pieces of the armor. After securing the remainder of his counter-terrorism response gear he threw the tactical vest loaded with ammunition over his bullet proof vest and picked up the unloaded colt pistol before slamming a clip home and then placing the black .45 caliber handgun into the holster inside his vest. Next he made sure to brush his hair out of the way before securing the helmet to his head and securing the chin strap. The last part of his arsenal was the P90 assault rifle and finally after loading the cartridge into the rifle he secured the shoulder strap over his left shoulder.

Just as he completed prepping he heard the unmistakable whine of a turbo charged engine being pushed to its limits right before the sound of screeching tires and angry honks. Gavin closed his eyes in annoyance. Enter Haruka. It appeared she had arrived in her normal fashion. He shut his trunk without bothering to look back. If he did it would just piss him off and cause him a mini aneurism. A moment later a Toyota Crown came to a screeching halt next to him. A side long glance confirmed that Haruka was indeed behind the wheel. The only plus side was that Michiru Kaioh appeared to be along for the ride. He could identify her immediately by her oddly colored sea foam colored hair and the ridiculous Australian bush hat that she always wore. Then again being a dead eye sniper gave her a certain leeway with standard uniform it seemed.

Haruka threw the car into park and popped the trunk in one solid motion before shooting a grin at her passenger. "Told ya I'd get us here in record time," she said with a slightly smug tone. When would Michiru learn not to bet on her response time it was always a losing battle. She briefly noted Michiru rolling her eyes but didn't let it bother her. Haruka was way too excited that they were finally being deployed. The tall blonde haired woman practically leaped out of her car and ran around to the back in glee over the prospect of the upcoming conflict. She was an adrenaline junky. The life of a police officer in a highly specialized unit suited her well. She was already pulling out her assault shotgun from the back of her car and securing it when Michiru came around to retrieve her single action bolt rifle and her back pack. Haruka turned to her superior officer and immediately noted the frown on his face. The man was a complete hard ass and was always on her case about something. She managed a mock salute with only a tiny hint of a condescending smirk as she addressed him. "Sergeant Kent, Officers Haruka Tenou and Michiru Kaioh reporting for duty!"

Michiru glanced up from securing her backpack from Haruka's cruiser and offered Gavin a small smile in apology for Haruka. It was a known fact that the two didn't get along and while Gavin was the second in command of the counter-terrorist unit, it didn't stop Haruka from butting heads and challenging the man on a constant basis. Their unit in general all had strong personalities since most were used to being in charge from their previous experiences. There were always some issues off the field. Once they got into the thick of the action, they all worked like a well-oiled machine. She shook her head slightly to clear it out before grabbing her single bolt action sniper rifle and slinging it over her shoulder.

"Tenou, how many times do I have to tell you the squad cars are not race cars. Keep driving like that and I'll make sure to take away your driving privileges." Gavin responded in an exasperated tone while trying to keep the smug look off his face at seeing Tenou's face sour at his reprimanding. He turned his attention to Michiru and favoring her with a small smile before hassling her about her ridiculous hat. "And Kiaoh…that hat isn't standard uniform. Once again you are working for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Force, you are not that S.T.A.R.S. sniper from Resident Evil." It was fruitless to reprimand her it really was. At least Tenou would fight and curse if she disagreed with something so you knew where she stood. Kaioh on the other hand just gave him that damned understanding smile and would calmly acknowledge his orders but never actually do anything to change unless she wanted to. The two were stubborn in their own ways but at least Kaioh humored him which he counted as a win.

He favored the two with a slight glare before waving his hand to signify that they were moving on. They had wasted enough time as it was and time was of the essence. Taking a quick look around he found the tower he wanted Kaioh at the top of and pointed it out to her. "Kaioh…take that tower. I want you in position immediately and give us eyes in the sky. We don't know what kind of threat is in there and back up won't arrive in time for us to sit around hoping the problem will get better. Tenou you're with me. We're going to take a look, give this guy a chance to back down and if he doesn't we're going to put holes in him until he goes down. Questions?" He asked in a tone that didn't invite any response. "Move out."

Michiru shrugged the giant rifle onto her shoulder so that it rested comfortably across her back and jogged towards the tallest building in the area. It overlooked most of the street the carnival was held in and would provide her the best possible vantage point. She was surprised that they were actually being called up and it was by luck that she was getting off shift when the call came in. Tenou grabbed her on the way out and they had hightailed it to the area. Not for the first time she wondered how the two of them ended up working for the Tokyo Police Department. She briefly paused in her thinking of the past as she made her way into the lobby of the hotel and paused only briefly to find the front desk. "I need access to the roof." She stated as she walked up to the attendant while flashing her badge that was dangling from a chain on her neck.

"Ta-a-a-ke the ce-center elevator to the top. Left then right…can't miss it." The desk attendant responded while nervously eyeing the giant rifle that the teal haired woman had casually slung over her shoulder.

"Thank you." She responded in a calm tone and offered a small comforting smile. Guns were certainly not normal here in Japan and she wasn't surprised the attendant would be nervous over the fact that a woman just walked in with a rifle. Cop or not it wasn't something one could say was a normal occurrence or even a rare occurrence. Not bothering to think about it any further she made her way over to the elevator and pressed the up button. She could feel the eyes of the hotel's guests on her and once more she wasn't surprised. With her Australian bush hat and giant rifle she looked more like a big game hunter than an officer of the law. Instead of engaging with the people surrounding her she instead retreated back to her thoughts. In a few minutes she would have to put her complete concentration on wind direction, speed, location, and distance.

The soft ping of the bell alerted her to the arrival of the elevator's car and she stepped in before pressing the button for the top most floor on the panel. Her thoughts drifted back to meeting Haruka. It had been a few years ago while the two of them had been in High School in Germany of all places. A soft smile crossed her face at the thought of what she thought of as her home country despite being American on paper. They had both been military brats and while she spent much of her youth in Germany, Haruka moved there from a base in Japan. The girls had run into each other at the base's shooting range which was a favored past time of the older kids at the German base. Upon meeting Haruka she found a kindred spirit in the fact that they were both adventurous and wanted to explore the world.

After a few years of traveling together, something had drawn them to Japan. Neither could put a finger on it but it just felt like it was where they were needed. And despite no formal training they had managed to get into the academy together and passed with flying colors. When the counter-terrorism task force was formed they applied and passed with flying colors there as well thanks to their interest in the shooting range in Germany. But if one pressed Michiru, she would admit that Haruka probably got in on her brazen attitude and scaring the hell out of the instructors.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the dinging bell of the elevator. She stepped off the elevator and onto the top floor. After a quick glance around she followed the instructions provided by the attendant and it led her to the roof as promised. Once she got out onto the roof she quickly started to unpack the items from her bag mainly her binoculars and range finder. Normally, she had a spotter but she would make do.

Within a minute she had a beat on the target. It looked like some demented clown from hell but it had just fired some kind of substance out of its body and stuck a civilian in a weird white uniform to a wall followed by the substance being thrown onto the man's face. There was another girl from the looks of it trapped in some kind of bubble. It must be some kind of chemical warfare. Shit, they weren't equipped for this kind of response. The only option would be to take it down quick. She quickly clicked the mic on and spoke calmly and succinctly. "Gavin, eyes on target. One tango in clown getup, two civilians in distress. Ready to fire on your command."

"Acknowledged Kaioh. Take the shot." Gavin responded gruffly. He glanced around the corner his P90 held low and half pointed towards the ground for the moment. Normally he'd give the perp a chance to give up but two lives were in danger and based on the unresponsive people that he had run into on the way in with Haruka, he doubted the perp was going to give up. He glanced over at Haruka who was pressed up tight against the opposite wall with her assault shotgun held low like his P90 before easing around the corner to watch Kaioh's handiwork. It didn't take long. One second the freak job in the clown get up was standing and then suddenly the whiz of a bullet nailed him in the skull spinning him around like a top. An almighty crack followed as the sound of the bullet discharging caught up. "Haruka get that shit off the males face. I'll take blondie!" He ordered before sprinting around the corner a single glance at the perp to make sure he was down for good before he rushed to the blonde that looked on the verge of passing out in the bubble that was starting to float away.

Haruka let a smile slide across her face. When out on a mission her girlfriend was like a guardian angel from above. In the training missions they ran she had never missed a single shot. Mentally clearing her head she sprinted towards the man that appeared to be on the verge of passing out. While running she shouldered the assault shotgun and made a grab at the edges of the substance around his face. She briefly noted that it felt a lot like rubber but didn't take any further time to worry about the issue before she physically started to rip it off his face. The man's head was limp and he appeared to be on the verge of passing out so she placed a foot against the wall for support. "Don't die on me!" She yelled in anger and with a final heave she managed to rip the rubber from his face. In her haste she had ripped a good chunk of his blonde locks out as well but he'd have to deal.

With an almighty gasp Jadeite took his first breathe of air in over a minute. It was pure luck on his part that despite being reborn as humans they seemed to have kept their sturdier endurance from their previous lives. Granted he was human to begin with so he relied more on his transformation than say the Sailor Sensei but ever little bit helped when dark creatures were out to kill them. He let his head hang for a moment as he attempted to recover before glancing up at the young woman that helped him. A brief look of recognition passed his face before his face twisted in horror. "Behind you!"

"Perp's up! Jesus fucking Christ he's up!" Michiru screamed out the warning through her mic. Her normally calm tone forgotten in her panic. She had looked away for a second and when she looked back the perp had pulled itself back up to its feet. Without even looking she pulled a bullet from the band in her Australian bush hat but by the time her second shot would ring out it was too late.

The first strike spun her around like a puppet with its strings suddenly cut. She slumped from the impact. Haruka felt immense pain blossoming in her chest, like someone had run a drill right into her and blood was starting to pour out. She briefly wondered why the vest hadn't stopped anything when she realized that whatever it was had gone out her back from the pain she felt there. Armor piercing was the final thought she had before two more rounds—for lack of a better term—impacted her sending her to the ground. Two more red spots grew in size in her stomach and upper left thigh. She didn't even feel the third impact. Her body was dying. A gasp of air only brought blood into her lungs.

Mass chaos started a moment later. Gavin, who had just finished cutting the blonde out of her bubble prison with his combat knife, turned around at the scream from Michiru over the mic. He absently slung the blonde over his left shoulder as she had passed out and raised the P90 up to position as he yelled out: "Tenou! Hang on!" He ducked a bit to avoid the shower of stones that exploded from one of the nearby walls from one of Kaioh's wayward shots. With the P90 already in full auto he pointed his gun towards the perp and unloaded his clip in a matter of seconds. The gun created the sound of a chainsaw as it fed through its clip and pulled up from the kickback but he didn't give a flying fuck. This had gone from a test of their skills to a nightmare. He pressed down on the trigger but the clip was empty but the demented clown just stood there with a smile on its face. Without a second thought he let the gun fall back to his side still attached by its sling. He reloaded the P90 while taking cover behind a nearby vendor's cart to avoid another round of whatever the hell that thing was firing. There was no way it was human after emptying an entire 50 round clip into it.

In response the creature let loose another volley of the armor piercing rubber shards. The shards tore up the side of the cart and the surrounding area but by luck the card seemed to be made of a sturdy enough material that the shards failed to penetrate Gavin’s make shift cover.

There was no way he could reach Tenou without getting shredded himself. With a grunt he laid the girl out next to him and checked her pulse with one hand while keying up his mic with the other. "Sergeant Gavin Kent, requesting immediate back up at Tokyo Carnival. Perp is armed with armor piercing rounds and is wearing bulletproof armor. Officer Tenou is down with critical injuries." Despite the tense situation he managed to keep it together but he couldn't help but wonder what the hell that thing was. The perp had shrugged off a .50 caliber bullet to the head and then fifty NATO rounds to the body without even pausing. The only plus side was that blondie had a pulse even if it was faint. The only problem was how the hell he was going to get out of here with a passed out girl.

The process was automatic after all these years. Pull the bolt back, eject the spent shell, reload, aim, and fire. Michiru could feel the tears streaming down her face as she watched the entire scene unfold below her but she was powerless. Haruka Tenou, her best friend and lover, was currently bleeding out below and this monster wasn't going down. Her second shot made in haste had missed sending a shower of rock and granite across the street from the high caliber round. The third shot didn't miss nor did the fourth or fifth. All three hit their target in the joints that only a crack marksman could hope to hit. If the man was wearing some sort of armor it wouldn't cover the joints. Much to her surprise, when the bullets connected to the elbow and both knees didn't even bring the thing down this time. Whatever was down there was out of their league and it was going to kill Gavin and the two bystanders as well if something wasn't done. She clicked her mic with the side of her head while sighting the perp for the sixth time. "This is Officer Kaioh, Sergeant Kent is pinned down with victim. Officer Tenou is down. Perp is wearing armor I am unable to penetrate. I am requesting back up and armored extraction."

 

 

"I'll kill you right here and now if you continue to lie you little blonde nuisance," Nephrite spat in annoyance. "But I have always heard it is rude to kill someone before proper introductions, I am the Western Shitennou, Nephrite. I wield the power of lightning and I shall make your skin crack and bleed under my power if you do not give me the location of the Princess." He ground the tip of the halberd into her soft unprotected stomach for a moment just to remind her of who was in charge here.

Usagi clenched her teeth in pain to keep from screaming out from the painful pressure being placed on her. She felt sick from the pain and barely kept herself from throwing up. Both her eyes were half closed in a squint and tears were starting to form at the corners of her eyes. "I'm telling you I don't know where your damn Princess is and I'm no Guardian either!" She took in another ragged breathe and tried to gather her bearings. A quick look around the top of the roof and she located the sword. Now the problem was getting to it. Her thoughts were interrupted though by the sound of a sharp crack.

Nephrite glanced up at the sudden noise. His eyes narrowed slightly the moment he identified the sound. A gun? He didn't think that Japan allowed guns for anyone other than the Self Defense Force. How odd…had the police force actually responded to the situation? That would be a surprise. A moment later he heard the unmistakable sound of a machine gun unloading. He let out a small laugh. Like he would design a Youma that could be taken down by human firearms? It would take one of those American tanks to put a dent in it. Still it may be entertaining to watch those foolish humans die in their effort to kill his Youma. He turned his attention back to the Princess' Guardian before viciously stomping her chest and knocking the air out of her. "It appears the good men and women of the Tokyo Police have bought you some time. Let us watch them die together, shall we?" He said not really expecting an answer.

With utter disregard for the girl's wellbeing he moved the halberd aside and leaned down to pick the twit up by the neck. A vicious smile crossed his face at the thought of strangling the answers out of her. Something unexpected happened though when his ungloved hand came in contact with the soft and supple creases of her exposed neck. What could only be described as a bolt of lightning suddenly arced off of her neck and encased his hand before both Usagi and Nephrite started to glow silver. He stared in confusion at first and then in fear when he saw her entire skin starting to glow silver to match her now silver hair and silver eyes. What madness was this?

The next thing he felt was lightning, electricity running through his veins. He fell to his knees, unable to dislodge his hand from around the damn girl's throat. What was she doing to him? It wouldn't stop. At first it was nothing more than an odd sensation despite the feeling of electricity but then the pain came. He attempted to scream out but he found his throat was sealed from the electric pulses running through his body. Joints started to randomly spasm, sending him toppling over on his side as he felt the burning sensation enter his head. Unbidden memories rushed forth the moment the electricity reached his brain.

Images flew by so fast he couldn't make sense of them. He managed to catch glimpses of them though. He was in a white uniform like Jadeite's, fighting next to a brown haired girl. Next he was in a formal jacket attending a ball. The images started coming faster and he caught but snippets. In one Nephrite saw himself fighting Beryl. In the next Beryl was leading him and the other Shitennou into battle against faceless enemies. Then the sad eyes of a silver haired beauty in her prime telling him he was forgiven. The pain became unbearable and he managed to with all his might release the Guardian's throat. With more effort than he thought possible he managed to roll away from her. His entire uniform was blackened and his hair singed. Burnt ozone permeated the air and flooded his nostrils making him feel queasy from the smell alone. "What the hell did you do to me you bitch," He screamed as the memories started to come flooding back without reprieve he brought his hands to his head and started to roll around on the ground feebly. "Make them stop! What are these images?"

Usagi for her part managed to get her breathe back from the vicious beating that Nephrite had started in on. She hadn't noticed the silver glow that she had briefly taken on but it would be too late anyway as her features had already started to fade back to her normal coloring. What the hell happened? She felt as if she had touched someone after running down the hallway in socks and given them a static shock. It hadn't been uncomfortable, just a weird sensation, yet whatever she did had managed to burn Nephrite like he had been struck be a lightning bolt. Now he was rolling around on the ground screaming like a crazy person. She slowly pulled herself up and inched her way on her butt back to her sword.

"Alright, don't engage with the crazy person," She muttered to herself uncomfortably. This was just disturbing the man was rolling around in clear mental anguish screaming his head off with no signs of stopping. When she reached her sword she quickly picked it up and raised it in front of her. With no idea what was happening to him or what she had done she was in no hurry to find out if he tried to touch her again. In the time it had taken her to get her sword up, Nephrite had managed to right himself on his feet and started stumbling towards her. "Just stay away from me," She cried out in what she hoped was an authoritative voice.

"What the hell have you done to my mind? You fucking bitch!" Nephrite's voice came out raspy from his heavy breathing. At some point he had managed to retrieve his halberd and was using it to lean on for support. He took a tentative step towards the Guardian but found himself stumbling to his one knee for support. How had she made him so weak? Was she truly this powerful or was it all a fluke brought on by fear? He managed to level a weak glare at her while still breathing heavily to regain his breath from the unexpected attack.

"Like I have a clue what happened to you," Usagi responded heatedly. That was the best she could come up with at least. Usagi tentatively stood up with her sword still leveled in Nephrite's general direction. Although he looked out of the fight she wasn't going to take any chances and if he made a move towards her she wouldn't hesitate to use her sword to…well probably stab him and beat him with the sword. It wasn't like she really knew how to use the thing other than whenever that voice in the back of her head took over. If he came at her, her plan came down to hoping that it would take over her actions again and pull her ass out of the fire.

Nephrite tried to raise himself to his feet again but he found he was too weak. He collapsed to both knees and only managed to stop himself from collapsing by leaning on his halberd once again. He knew he needed to retreat he was too weak to even stand. If this girl had been Jadeite or that damnable Sailor V they would have killed him already. "Enjoy your victory while you can, Guardian. Your Princess is as good as mine!" With a final glare he gathered what remained of his powers and disappeared in a column of black lightning.

"Jokes on you asshole! I have no flipping clue where your Princess is and I'm certainly not her Guardian!" Usagi called out before blowing a final raspberry as Nephrite disappeared completely in the form of lightning.

What the hell was up with these people? Could they be any more cliché looking for a Princess and threatening to kill her or that victory shall be theirs in the end. Was there some type of school for these idiots that trained them how to talk so they all sounded the same? She counted herself lucky that this Nephrite guy didn't get into some kind of monologueing like most cartoon villains seemed to do. With a final shake of her head she headed to the edge of the building to see how the battle was going. The scene below looked like something out of a war movie. She took a moment to steel herself and find her resolve before jumping over the edge of the building to the fight below. Once more a voice guided Usagi as she drew a circle with the tip of her sword on the way down towards the Youma below that told her to exclaim "Lunar Eclipse!"

 

 

Jadeite struggled against his bonds but found no give. With his hands and feet stuck in place he couldn't generate any of his powers of fire to free himself. The damn clown was going to kill them and he had no clue where Usagi was. If she ran he would personally see to it that he skinned her alive for this. That is if he managed to get out of this alive. Unfortunately the only person that had a chance of assisting him was passed out behind a vendor stand with one of Tokyo's finest and the one that saved him was unfortunately bleeding out mere feet from him. From what he could tell she was still breathing and that alone was some type of miracle. Her skin was pale and her eyes were closed with short shallow breathes coming in now and again—the only indication she was still amongst the living for the moment. If he could just get to her he could seal the wounds. With a growl he struggled against his bonds but all for naught. Then he heard a voice from above that he never thought he'd be so thankful to hear. It appeared the cavalry had arrived and said cavalry better have a damn good explanation for almost letting him die.

 

 

"Shit!" Gavin yelled in surprise as he dived behind another wall just avoiding a painful end by those hardened rubber shards the clown creature was firing out. He was currently trying to keep that damned thing's attention on him and away from the passed out girl, Haruka, or the man stuck to the wall. Unfortunately, to do so meant starting a deadly game of cat and mouse. Luckily the creature, because at this point he had emptied over three clips adding up to one hundred and fifty rounds into it without an effect and there was no better explanation as to what to call it, seemed to be enjoying the game. He clicked his mic with the side of his cheek as he loaded another magazine into his P90. "Kaioh any word on that back up?"

"Still staging goddamn it. They're trying to find a Unimog or a Fuso Fighter with enough armor to take an armor piercing round. Fuck all if they have anything to help us." Michiru responded bitterly over the mic. Normally she was never this worked up but Haruka was either close to death or dead at this point and it was due to her inattentiveness it would be understandable. A certain part of her found this whole situation unbelievable. They were completely outclassed and this bastard in the clown get up was just screwing around with them at this point. None of it made sense to her and that was what was burning her up. This should have been wrapped up in the first five minutes of them being on scene but instead they had an officer down and no backup. She loaded another round into her rifle before clicking the mic again.

"I'm going to put another round through this bastard's head. That should give you enough time to move without reprise." Michiru didn't wait for a response and slid the round into the chamber before sighting her target and firing off another round. To her surprise, the clown simply moved its head to the side before looking right at her through her scope. A creepy grin crossing its face as it pointed right at her. The damn thing knew where she was and she found herself involuntarily shuddering when it slid a finger across its neck. She suddenly lost sight of the entire street. It was almost like a complete black out, one minute the city lights had illuminated the street the next moment it was as if it never existed. Just inky blackness of space or an eclipse something in the back of her head seemed to suggest.

 

Gavin grunted in annoyance at the information relayed over the radio and readied himself for the shot so he could run. The moment it rung out he pushed off the wall and ran towards his next cover but something had gone terribly wrong. One moment he was in motion and the next minute he was being held off the ground. He struggled to reach his gun but the creature had somehow expanded its hand to encompass his entire upper body to keep him from bringing his weapon to bear on the thing. He attempted to speak but when he drew in air the creature just squeezed him hard enough to knock the breath out of his lungs. This mission was doomed from the start. Nothing short of a high powered war head would kill this son of a bitch. A moment later everything turned pitch black like the lights had been turned off in a windowless room. He mentally prepared himself for the killing blow.

 

One moment she was falling in the back drop of the Tokyo City lights and the next moment everything turned to black. Usagi wasn't afraid. She simply melted into the shadow as if it were a natural movement. Then the darkness disappeared and she found herself behind the creature, her sword glowing and had somehow made its way into the creature's chest cavity. She twisted the weapon as it started sending pulses of silver power into the creature and burned through its veins like hell fire. It started screaming much to Usagi's surprise as the others she had, well, dusted for lack of a better term had never screamed in pain. Despite her surprise she held onto the sword until the creature suddenly disappeared in a pile of dust as well. One second it was there and the next second much like the others before, it ceased to exist. This left her to just stare when the guy dressed in what looked like American SWAT gear from the TV shows dropped to the ground.

"Um, you alright Mister?" Usagi said tentatively.

"Lunar Ronin," Jadeite grounded out completely pissed off he had to actually use her cover name. Unbelievable. He died a little bit on the inside just saying her name. "I could use some help getting down. If you're not too busy of course."

"Oh!" Usagi turned around quickly with a blush. The blood rushing to her cheeks warmed them to the point she could even feel it. "Right! Sorry…ummm Shitennou..?" She questioned with a slight tilt of her head.

"Just…yeah…fine. Get over here and get me down," Jadeite responded with a slight sigh of annoyance and closed his eyes in an attempt to reign in his annoyance. Really how embarrassing was this situation? He had years and years of experience and she managed to end this whole thing in a matter of minutes.

"So I just…cut here?" Usagi stated with a tad bit of uncertainty as she waved her giant blade at the rubber encasing his one hand. An experimental poke of her blade against the rubber didn't really provide the positive results they wanted.

Jadeite felt his stomach drop the moment she started to casually wield the blade around his hands. His very irreplaceable hands. "Just stop! Never mind just go wake up Sailor V! Please, please, just get her up and get her over here."

"What. You don't trust me?" Usagi harrumphed before crossing her arms over her chest and leveled her best glare at Jadeite. "You were all about including me earlier."

"Well earlier did not mean the possible loss of my appendages," Jadeite said slowly in a condescending voice as if talking to a toddler. "Now please get Sailor V so she can get me out of this mess. I need to stop that girl from bleeding out!" He finished before jutting his chin towards the dying police girl.

Usagi glanced back at the body she hadn't noticed before and let out a small shriek of surprise. The SWAT-looking man was attempting to compress her wounds and stop the bleeding unsuccessfully at the moment. She lost most of her anger in the surprise of being put in a life or death situation. She took a moment to attempt to gather herself before a determined look crossed her face.

Jadeite realized that she was staring right at his rubber encased hand. And she had that look. He recognized that look. It was the same look Minako got when she was about to do something utterly stupid and would possibly cause injury to the person on the receiving end. "Whatever you're doing I beg you not to do it." His voice came out in a strangled whisper and a little on the high side in pitch.

"We have to save her," Usagi said before she brought the sword up and around in a wide arc. A force she still didn't recognize guided her through the motions and she quickly pivoted to do the same on his other hand. Without a single pause she slung the large blade behind her back and started to walk towards where she had seen Minako while coming down from above. "Save that woman, I'll get Sailor V," she commanded in a surprisingly authoritative tone.

Jadeite found himself staring in surprise as he carefully flexed both hands and inspected them for damage. To his amazement, nothing was even nicked by the blade. "Right, right," He muttered in acknowledgement before he flexed his fingers one last time and gathered fire to both fists. With a blast to each of his feet he melted the rubber off enough for him to get out. To his chagrin his boots were covered in the shit but at least he could move. With one last glance back at his temporary prison he quickly made his way over to the fallen officer. "Out of the way I'm going to seal her wounds," He demanded.

"With what?" Gavin looked up in annoyance at the bystander that apparently had been freed by that strangely dressed girl with the sword. If he hadn't been so worried about Haruka he may have taken a moment to assess the girl's threat level but with Michiru still covering him he wasn't as worried.

"I'm going to seal her wounds with fire," Jadeite said impatiently. He clicked his fingers together generating small sparks from the clicks that disappeared in the breeze a moment later. "Now get the hell out of my way if you want her to live and call off your little sniper."

"Look kid I don't have time for your games." Gavin started before he was suddenly pushed back. He absently acknowledged the kid was smart. He had put Gavin in between him and Michiru to keep her from getting a clean shot. It also concerned him that he knew exactly where a highly skilled sniper was firing from. It took him a moment to recover but he started back towards the kid. "Get the hell away from her and you're under arrest for assaulti-"

"Shut up old man!" Jadeite growled out before he snapped his fingers again and fire completely engulfed his hands. Without even looking up he pressed his hands down on the chest wound. He listened for the sizzling to stop and moved on to the chest and thigh wound. One hand on each wound to provide a seal and burn the wound shut. Honestly he was amazed that this girl had lasted as long as she did but he could feel a high concentration of energy in her body. She was a fighter. Perhaps one close to her chi and that was probably why she had lived as long as she did. It was odd that the sniper on the roof at the far end of the street also had about the same amount of power. It wasn't unheard of but it was rare that people with this much energy inhabited the same area. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and rolled her over to get the exit wounds. It took but a moment before she was patched up. It also was in that time that he felt the cold steel of a barrel pressed to his side.

"Now I want you to get up nice and slowly kid. I want your name, I want to know who the hell you are, and most importantly I want to know what you just did to my partner," Gavin demanded with a growl. The fact that the kid had just pretty much pulled a Human Torch on him didn't even phase him not after that freak show clown. It also made him weary of anything that wasn't obeying the accepted laws of what a human could or couldn't do.

"Umm…Shitennou? I got Sailor V but she's still a little loopy." Usagi interrupted hesitantly. There was no hurry to have a gun pointed at you as far as she was concerned. Minako was half slung over her shoulder and leaning against her with a slightly spaced out expression. Whatever gas that had been in the balloon really messed her up.

"HEY!" Minako yelled at the two before waving. "We're gonna go paint the town yellow!" Minako giggled uncontrollably and ended up leaning further onto Usagi, almost knocking them both to the ground. After regaining her footing the loopy blonde pointed at Jadeite. "Com'on…stop…stop…playin cop. I wan…wan go hav'in fun. Cause girls jus wanna have fun…" She trailed off slightly confused by what she was trying to get at. A look of extreme concentration crossed her face before she managed to zero in on Jadeite. "You're mean…you say mean things…I…I dun like you. Dun't they always say…if you dun't got nuthin nice ta say…dun't gift them a horse cause it's too good to be true…" She trailed off uncertainly.

"Ma'm do you need medical attention." Gavin offered hesitantly. He briefly took his eyes off the young man confident in the man not wanting to be filled with bullets to try and assess the girl's condition. She was the one he had cut out of that balloon and if that freak job had used some kind of chemical nerve agent on her she'd have to be quarantined.

Jadeite took his chance while the man was distracted. Not that the gun shot would be fatal in his current form but it would still hurt like a bitch. With a click of his fingers his hand was once more engulfed in flames and he grabbed the barrel. The heat of his hands easily fused the barrel into a solid piece of metal and completely slagged the gun. With a jaunty wave he jumped back to the side of Minako and Usagi. "Sorry Officer but we must depart. Your friend will recover. She's strong. Just get her to a hospital." He briefly turned to Usagi as he transferred Minako into his arms before slinging her over her shoulder. "I'll take Sailor V, you just follow me."

"Jed," Minako wailed as she was manhandled. This wasn't the first time he had done this and it wouldn't be the last. She could only wave at the police officer that was staring between the three teens and his slagged gun.

 

Gavin just stared in utter shock at his gun and then at the teens as they literally bounded away into thin air. What the hell was he even going to put on his report? Crazed shooter is vaporized…literally vaporized by what he could only describe as some cross between Wonder Woman and Xena. Then the Human Torch sealed Haruka's wounds and they departed with some teen playing a magical girl from Card Captor Sakura as it was the only thing he could grab in his mind that matched the ridiculously showy outfit. This was going to be a mess he could just feel it. Even worse the only person to back him up now was Michiru and she would automatically be considered emotionally compromised based on her relationship with Haruka. The next thing he knew he was being pulled away from Haruka by paramedics and she was being loaded into a fully armored Unimog.

"Shit," He muttered to himself.

 

"So where are we going?" Usagi questioned as she once more put power into her thighs and pushed off sending herself sailing over another gap between two tall buildings. It was amazing what one could do when one avoided overthinking the action being performed. She landed with a slight stumble before taking off again to bring herself up next to Jadeite.

"Unfortunately, my place," he muttered darkly. "We need to debrief and Sailor V is in no condition to do so out in the open. Not to mention we may avoid that damned white cat."

"Ish na nice to be mean to tha preettieeee kittyyy." Minako interjected and lifted her head up for a moment to take in her surroundings. The flashing lights from the buildings as they went by was causing her to feel sick and she decided to just put her head back down and close her eyes for the time being.

Usagi glanced over at Minako a tad concerned. "Shouldn't we take her to a hospital or something…?" She asked tentatively. Her wide expressive eyes tracked Minako with concern. It wasn't like almost seeing people die was normal for her. The fact that Minako had been passed out when she found her and was still acting weird concerned her.

"She's survived worse," Jadeite responded in a clipped tone before glancing over at Usagi when he landed on the next rooftop to pause for a moment. It must have been her eyes or maybe the fact she was new to this because normally he'd respond with a sarcastic or acidic comment on not being able to show up at the hospital. But Usagi probably deserved some comfort. After a small exasperated sigh he half turned to face the young girl. "Despite looking human we're all pretty sturdy and Minako will be back to normal in another hour or so. We've both been in situations where we walked away from wounds that should have killed us but it never does."

"Oh, so we're like Wolverine?" Usagi said before a small smile crossed her face and she made some slashing motions with her two fists. "We totally need to get the claws, some kickin yellow and brown suits and of course." She lowered her voice drastically. "Gotta talk like this Bub."

Jadeite just stared at Usagi in mild disbelief. Was he having a stroke? Because that was the only thing that could possibly explain what he was seeing and hearing right now out of Usagi's mouth. What the hell went on in her head? "You know sometimes I worry I am actually dead and died of a stroke. Then I realize you're actually saying these things and it concerns me. I'm trying to save the world with someone that is actually suggesting we do something a seven year old child would suggest." He just shook his head as if he would hope it would somehow go away. After a final sigh of annoyance he prepared to make another jump. "Come on we're almost there."

"HEY!" Usagi yelled a little miffed at his dismissal of her idea. "You know Minako is right you're just no fun! You gotta unwind!" Usagi called out as she took off behind him in a huff.

"Yes well, someone has to be an adult in our group." Jadeite responded sarcastically before making a small motion towards a balcony off of the building ahead to indicate his destination. With a final leap he landed gracefully on the balcony. He closed his eyes and let out an annoyed sigh when he heard pottery breaking followed by a slam when Usagi landed. It appeared he'd be replacing his small balcony garden. Probably for the best to be honest as he rarely remembered it was there.

"You know I can see why you and Artemis don't get along." She said in a casual tone as she dusted herself off and attempted to move the broken pottery closer together with her foot. She was kinda pissed at Jadeite's last comment so she wasn't feeling too guilty.

"Oh?" Jadeite responded with a slight raise of his eyebrow. This ought to be an insightful observation.

"You two are like two peas in a pod." Usagi almost laughed at the suddenly sour look that Jadeite now had on his face. "Both of you are uptight, bossy, and have easily bruised egos that need soothing after your feathers have been ruffled. You both act all high and mighty but are just covering up the fact you don't know any more than we do. Finally you both have no sense of humor." She did laugh this time because she could tell Jadeite was fuming by the fact his face was turning red in either anger or embarrassment.

"I am nothing like that fleabag," He said in that clipped tone of his. To think that she could even think that the two acted anything like each other. With a huff he opened his balcony's sliding door and stepped into the two bedroom apartment he was currently renting. For once he was thankful that he only lived like a normal young man most of the time since the sofa was more or less cleared off. He took Minako off of his shoulder and laid her out on the sofa before turning his attention back to Usagi. "Now what I'd love to know is what held you up from assisting us."

"Well some crazy guy with a giant pole thingy that shot electricity came out of nowhere and started attacking me," Usagi answered him with some amount of hesitation. She really didn't want to go over the whole experience. Almost getting electrocuted by a crazy man that thought she was some kind of Guardian for Minako's Princess had put a damper on the whole evening.

"Wait," Jadeite paused before shifting his entire attention to Usagi. Some stupid excuse of getting wet feet or scared of jumping down from the building they were on was what he had expected. "You didn't run into Nephrite did you?"

"Yeah! That's it! He was all like 'I'm the Western Shitennou of Thunder and Lightning fear my wrath,' And he was going to kill me too!" Usagi actually thought she made a passable imitation of his voice and mentally congratulated herself on that fact.

"And he just…what. Let you go?" Jadeite asked with a slight twitch of his eyebrow. This was all suspect at best. If Nephrite had decided to attack her and had her alone there was no way Usagi would have been able to fend him off. Even with her surprisingly powerful attacks she couldn't overwhelm the Western Shitennou. Nephrite never would have made a move on her unless he had consulted the stars first and found it to be in his favor. The man was nothing if not a superstitious when it came to those bedamned stars he read.

Usagi just stared down at the ground at the question because she had a feeling that Jadeite wouldn't like the answer. He never seemed to like any of her answers lately. Probably because they mainly consisted of "I don't know" or "Well it just does that." Still it wasn't exactly her fault. It was all his fault for leaving her up there! But he probably wouldn't see it that way. It just wasn't fair.

"The answer isn't on the floor," Jadeite commented sarcastically. He briefly rolled his eyes wondering what jewel of wisdom she would possibly offer up over her encounter and why she was still breathing. He somehow doubted it would be very enlightening.

"I know that!" Usagi shot back in a scathing tone and glared at Jadeite. "I was just trying to find a way to answer your question!"

"Well…" He responded slowly in his normally sarcastic tone. "Putting the clues together from what I know about you and how well you are doing at this being a Senshi thing, my guess is either he either was toying with you or you unlocked some other power of yours and you have no idea how you did it." He smirked slightly. Seriously these girls were too easy. He could read their expressions like a book. Although Usagi tended to be a bit easier to read since Minako was just always so god damn cheerful.

Usagi huffed and crossed her arms in a petulant manner. "Well if you're going to be such a jerk about it, maybe I won't tell you."

"Oh come on!" Jadeite groaned. "Are you really going to forsake us all by withholding possible pertinent information because I hurt your feelings?"

"Well you are kinda a jack ass Jed." Minako said sleepily from the sofa she had been dumped on earlier. She made no further attempt to move though. At the moment her head was swirling and every time she opened her eyes the room just kept spinning. Whatever she had been forced to breathe in, in that bubble had contained more than just helium. For the moment she enjoyed the fact she wasn't being manhandled by Jadeite or beaten up by some creepy Youma.

"Not helping," Jadeite grumbled. Great Minako was awake which meant that the two of them would be halting any progress with more inane questions. He was about to thank the powers above that Artemis hadn't arrived until he heard a scratching at the balcony door. "How the hell did that damn cat get…you know what? Never mind." He just decided to give up on life. Stuck in an apartment with a talking cat, a spaced out air head, and a petulant woman-child was starting to sound like a punishment you received upon death for leading a terrible life. Perhaps this was karma's doing and he just needed to be a nicer person…or he needed to just leave.

The thought of just picking up and leaving was starting to sound appealing when he actually thought of what was to come. He was going to have to spend time with these people…possibly forever. When it was just Minako and Artemis it hadn't been too bad. Minako could take care of herself despite what happened tonight. She rarely needed help. The problem was the addition of Usagi. He found himself ending up in their company more and more even if he was technically doing it by choice because he needed her help. He could feel a migraine coming on and he took a seat at his computer chair with a small sigh of defeat.

"Are you gonna let Artemis in?" Usagi said. It looked like Jadeite was about to have a mental break down and on one hand she didn't want to press him over the edge. On the other hand the scratching sound was getting annoying.

"No. In the fight between that cat and the door, I am firmly on the side of the door. Besides if he can't make it through a door then what use is having magical powers if you're defeated by a piece of glass on a slider?" Jadeite responded without any hesitation.

"I guess you have a point…" Usagi trailed of tentatively before turning to look at Artemis. He looked kinda pathetic really and she shrugged helplessly when he gave her a pitiful look for help. "Sorry Artemis! Jadeite says that you have to get in on your own!" She called out loud enough for the poor cat to hear her through the door.

Artemis for his part flattened his ears in annoyance before turning his baleful glare at Jadeite but the man just met it with a bored look and made a shooing motion. Really? Shoo him away? The advisor and keeper of the Sailor Senshi? The injustices he had to suffer were ridiculous. Once the Princess was found he would appeal to her better nature and request that Jadeite be executed for his insubordination. Sure she didn't have sway over the Earth's court but the Princess had enough standing that it could work. No one would even miss the sarcastic asshole. A thought crossed his mind and shuddered to think if Jadeite ever came to a true position of power in the future. Shaking the thought away he grumbled once more at the injustice of it all before phasing through the door. "You know, it'd have been simpler to just let me in."

"Yes well I don't have pets for a reason." Jadeite responded in a bored tone. "I don't have time to scoop their litter." A smirk crossed his face. "Unless of course Minako has you potty trained?"

Artemis glared at Jadeite and let out a low growl. "My private goings on are none of your business."

"He calls it his private time." Minako managed to giggle from the sofa. "I have to bring the paper in and close the door. Oh and the vent fan has to be on just right or he gets all ruffled. He's got a shy bladder." She practically laughed herself off the sofa despite the pain it was putting her in.

"Minako," Artemis hissed in embarrassment and put his paws over his face and slowly dragged them down in disbelief. "That was private…" Once he found the Queen…all of them would be ejected and thrown into the sea or thrown into space. This just wasn't fair. Why wasn't life ever fair? He mentally complained even though he knew no one would hear him.

"Well as long as you put the toilet seat down when you're done," Jadeite said lightly and tried to contain the mirth spreading on his face.

"It's alright Artemis." Usagi bent down to pet Artemis and gently scratched under his chin.

"Thank you for understanding," Artemis replied in a put out tone. He glared at Minako who was still trying not to roll off the sofa and then at Jadeite who was currently staring at him with eyes full of mirth.

"It's alright besides I bet it is hard having to ask someone to wipe for you. I know I have a hard time asking for help as well." Usagi responded with a small smile.

"Er…" Artemis started.

Minako suddenly stopped and swung her head around to stare intently at the cat. A suspicious tone entered Minako's voice as she started to put things together. "Hey…just wait a second the toilet paper is never disturbed after you're in there and the water or soap is never disturbed. Wait you don't wipe do you!?" Minako half asked and half accused while pulling a slightly disgusted face.

"We cats are a clean species I'll have you know!" Artemis started in an attempt to defend himself but he had a bad feeling this would be going downhill fast.

"EWWWW!" Usagi cried as she pulled her hand off the cat. "Eww I can't believe you're a talking sentient cat and you don't wipe or wash your hands!" She looked down at her hands in slight disgust and absently wiped them on her mini skirt.

"Oh come on!" Artemis groaned. "You'd pet a normal cat without issue."

"Yes but normal cats don't know any better." Jadeite cut in with a small smirk. "Seriously I knew you people on the Moon were barbaric but I didn't realize you didn't believe in wiping or washing your hands."

"Yes well…the Moon Kingdom afforded certain…amenities." Artemis said with a huff before glaring at all of the people in the room. "You know I have half a mind to return to the Dark Kingdom, memories restored or not!"

Jadeite just snorted and rolled his eyes while Minako shot Artemis an indulgent smile.

"Oh yeah!" Usagi suddenly shouted out surprising the rest of the room. "That is what Nephrite started screaming about! He touched me and then he started to do spasm and roll around on the ground. He was screaming about memories and then when he finally got himself together he was yelling at me for doing something to his mind! Then he just disappeared in a column of lightning."

"You mean to tell me that you were able to unlock some of his memories?" Jadeite asked with sudden interest. If she could unlock their memories as well then perhaps between his powers and whatever she did on accident…wait never mind he thought it was Usagi so it was clearly on accident. Still if she could also do what he could do then perhaps they had a chance of turning the Shitennou back to their original selves.

Usagi shrugged uncomfortably when she realized that not only was Jadeite staring at her but Minako as well. "Umm…I don't really know. I mean I'm just going off what happened. He got real confused and kept going on about memories. Then he appeared really weak. I think he was about to pass out he was so weak."

"Hm…well you may have just gained another useful skill," Jadeite commented absently as he continued to dissect her with his eyes. What was so special about her? He had done the same thing to Zoisite but on a much smaller scale. Whatever he had unlocked had barely affected the man's loyalty. He had noticed some hesitation at times when dealing with him. Still for her to unlock so many memories that she had physically weakened him to the point of exhaustion? It was nothing short of amazing.

"Could you stop staring at me like that? It is kinda creepy," Usagi said before heading over to the sofa and taking a seat by Minako's feet to break eye contact with Jadeite. He was getting that obsessive intense look he got when he was thinking about something. It also rarely meant anything good for her.

"Sorry." Jadeite shook himself out of his thoughts. "Just if you are able to unlock memories to the point of physically exhausting him then I think we can turn him back to our side if you touch him again and did what you did to him again or I manage to get a hold of him and purify any remaining remnants of the false memories that Beryl implanted."

"False memories? So you mean the crazy lightning guy should be fighting with us?" Usagi asked. She was just a little confused. When this whole thing started out it seemed like it was a pretty straight forward mission. Save the Earth: Check. Kill bad guys: Check. Find missing Royalty: Check. And then reestablish the old ruling system of following a King and a Princess? Cause hey why not.

"Yes. Minako and I were lucky enough to escape it," Jadeite started to explain before glancing at Artemis. "Artemis too, but mostly because the brainwashing didn't take with him. I think you had to be above a certain IQ level for your brain to be able to buy the fact that your real memories were in fact the false memories and your false memories were real and poor Artemis just didn't make the cut."

"You know I'm right here." Artemis grumbled dejectedly. "And it was due to loyalty thank you very much."

"You do have some trouble with the computer systems from the Moon Kingdom." Minako stated in a thoughtful tone.

"It is because I have to use paws!" Artemis hissed in annoyance. "I swear working with you two is the greatest insult I've ever had to endure! Why couldn't Ami have awoken from the false memories, she at least always respected me."

"Yes, yes…the pretty kitty is angry with his allies and proves that beggars can be choosers. Nothing new." Jadeite waved off Artemis with a condescending smirk.

"Soooooo you guys were brain washed too and got away?" Usagi asked before looking back and forth between the two to see which one would get the ball rolling.

"Yep!" Minako chirped brightly as she sat up quickly in excitement to tell a good story. It had everything other than a love story but she had no problem adding that in whether it was true or not. After all the facts should never get in the way of a good yarn or something to that extent not that Minako ever really paid attention to those sayings. She was about to start but fell back on the sofa with a queasy look coming over her face. "I don't feel so good."

"Just…please, whatever you do, don't throw up on my sofa," Jadeite said in exasperation. Really was it too much to ask that his apartment survive a single run in with Minako? The last one had burned down in France thanks to a snafu with the waffle iron but he had his doubts with that story. Cursing to himself under his breathe, Jadeite found that once again he was left to clean up every god damn mess. Once again conveniently ignoring the fact that he probably caused half the problems to begin with but Minako and Artemis were not without fault.

"I guess it all started back when we were awakened. While the other Shitennou and I were awakened by Beryl, the Sailor Senshi and their guardians were awakened by Luna, the other mentor and from what I'm told the more annoying cat, but that is up for debate." Jadeite said and gave Artemis a smug smirk.

The white cat just huffed and curled into a little ball in protest. He found it more productive to just sleep since if he was awake he'd just be signing himself up for more abuse by the jack ass that Minako constantly forced him into the company of.

"Anyway, Beryl used some kind of magic to suppress the memories of the Shitennou. For some reason and I think it has to do with my connection to fire and purity." He glared at Minako at her giggling the moment her said purity before he continued after casually giving her the finger. Not that she could see it since she was currently snort laughing into her hands. "The brainwashing didn't fully take. I started to get my memories back the more I fought and eventually I unlocked enough to realize what was going on. After that I started taking the fight to Beryl and unfortunately my only allies were Minako and the fleabag so we were unable to launch much of a counter offensive." Jadeite chuckled. "We tried to unlock the memories of the others but after a failed attempt with Zoisite they stopped coming down to fight as often. And the Senshi are all but hopeless."

"Why would the Senshi be hopeless?" Usagi asked before looking over to Minako who had mostly calmed down despite an occasional giggle to which Jadeite rolled his eyes in annoyance. "If you can convert the Shitennou, why not the Senshi? I mean you remembered."

Minako took a moment to get herself under control and almost had it before she looked at Jadeite again and busted up laughing. Purity? Really how could he even say that with a straight face? The man was the least pure person she knew so the fact he had the power of fires of purity was just laughable at best. "Sor…Sorry." She started laughing again and just barely kept herself from snorting in amusement at her own thoughts.

Artemis laid his ears flat in an attempt to deaden the sound of Minako's high pitched laugh and then her snorting. He cracked his eyes open to observe the others in the room and after a moment he decided perhaps it was time to step in. Minako was laughing her ass off and Jadeite appeared to be trying to kill her by staring holes into her head if his glare was anything to go by. And once more the role of adult fell to him. After a long suffering sigh he pulled himself into a sitting position and coughed into his paw to get Usagi's attention.

"Since my charge is unable to let me sleep in peace…I may as well explain what happened to the Senshi to the best of my knowledge." He carried on without acknowledging the fact that Minako and Jadeite were carrying on like little children. Perhaps it was time to relocate to Usagi. The girl despite her failing at maturity managed to hold onto the guise of wisdom much better than Minako ever could. "The Senshi were awoken by Luna. She was never very forthcoming on the subject when I asked and perhaps she never fully trusted that I bought into the memories. She was awoken by some man that showed her that our memories were all supposedly implanted by Queen Serenity and that they were lies. He helped to show Luna how to unlock what were our supposed real memories."

Artemis paused for a moment and allowed himself to purr in happiness when he saw he had Usagi's undivided attention. Usagi was actually listening to him! Alright he was officially moving in with her. Is this what respect felt like? He had gone so long with just the scraps of attention he received from Minako. She never listened to him all the way, hence why Minako ended up in some of the situations that almost got her killed. "Minako was able to find the truth by using her powers that are closely keyed to love. The genuine and selfless power of love that Minako is connected to, much like Jadeite's purity of fire helped both of them see through the illusion just like my loyalty."

"Don't you mean that the lie was too complex for your little brain to handle so it just did a cold reboot when faced with too many confusing variables?" Jadeite said sardonically. Really It was just fun to get the little cat all worked up. It was a past time that he engaged in after a stressful day. Usually his sarcasm went over Minako's head and from when he attempted to fight with Usagi he found her to be a challenge at times. That left Artemis as the easy target.

"You know my bladder is starting to get full and since I'm just a stupid cat…well right about here looks good." Artemis trailed off as he lifted his leg threateningly and aimed towards the entertainment stand and Blu Ray player. If there was one weapon in his arsenal that was devastating no matter what the situation it was cat pee. "You'll never get the smell out. I'm not neutered."

"That can be arranged you little bastard," Jadeite said imperiously while leaning towards the cat. "I dare you…one drop and I will burn your balls off so fast."

"Boys!" Minako finally interjected in an exasperated tone. She slowly pulled herself up to a sitting position and hit them with what was nothing short of a death glare. "I have a massive headache from almost dying tonight. If you two don't shut the hell up and stop your asinine pissing match right now I will castrate the both of you!" She held both of their eyes for a moment before she started speaking again, articulating each and every word. "Are we clear?"

"Yes." Jadeite responded automatically. He was still a little shell shocked from Minako's outburst. It was easy to forget the Minako was supposed to be the leader of the other Senshi. Normally was she so agreeable and carefree but then if she was pushed far enough this switch was flipped and she turned into an unstoppable force of rage.

Artemis slowly lowered his leg and just nodded in embarrassment.

"Soooo…can we get back to the crazy lost memories from the past thing you guys keep going on about?" Usagi queried with a slight roll of her eyes. The whole thing sounded insane but they seemed to be committed to the whole thing so she figured she would just go along with it for now. If it meant that Sailor V would teach her personally then she'd put up with the crazy past life memory thing.

"Right." Artemis coughed. "As I was saying. The Shitennou's memories were suppressed by Beryl and with enough power the lock can be broken. Jadeite almost succeeded with Zoisite, one of the other Shitennou while in France but he did not have enough power at the time. To free the other Senshi due to the complexity of the issue and the dark taint lingering within them a stronger lock breaker for lack of a better term is needed. While the Shitennou’s lock can be overwhelmed with pure force, the Senshi need to have the dark taint in their souls removed as well. The shock of forcing the memories back without purifying their souls first could kill them. We need to find the Princess. She will hopefully have the power of the Silver Crystal, the power source of the Moon Kingdom in consideration of time and with that power she will be able to purify the Senshi." Artemis finished with a small cat like smirk. "And if we have time we'll work on finding Jadeite's King."

"And now that we know you have the same power to unlock the suppressed memories of the Shitennou we will need to discuss in further detail how to use this to our advantage." Jadeite interjected while throwing a glare towards the damned little cat.

"Right." Usagi yawned she hadn't realized how tired she was and glanced at the clock hanging on Jadeite's wall. Her eyes bugged out at the time displayed. It was almost midnight! Her parents were going to kill her. "Shit, I gotta go or else I'll be grounded for the next five weeks. I'll listen to your crazy past memories later."

Jadeite rolled his eyes at her consistent disregard about their past lives. Clearly she must have either been created by Queen Serenity or her memories weren't unlocked yet. Either way it was an annoyance but telling her otherwise was clearly a pointless venture at this time. "Very well…I trust you'll make it home on your own?"

"Of course I'm not an invalid." Usagi responded with a snort as she pulled herself up and waved to Artemis and Minako. "Feel better Minako and I guess we'll talk soon."

"See ya soon Usa!" Minako responded in a chipper voice.

"Safe travels Usagi." Artemis responded with a casual wave of his paw.

"I'll be at your house tomorrow evening." Jadeite informed Usagi in a bored tone before she could leave. He silently counted down the brief moments until Usagi would question what he meant by that. A smirk crossed his face the moment she opened her mouth. And there it was.

"Um…why?" Usagi raised a questioning eyebrow. Just what the hell was he on about? Whatever it was probably was not in her favor that was for sure. Anytime Jadeite showed amusement or glee you could be certain it didn't favor anyone else but him. As far as she was concerned he just enjoyed causing chaos.

Jadeite grinned. If there was one thing he loved doing was delivering bad news. "Why for tutoring of course. You didn't think we'd just create a cover and then jeopardize it by not getting your grades up, did you?"

"You're the worst," Usagi muttered with a sigh of displeasure. Life clearly wasn't fair and Jadeite was hell bent on capitalizing on it. With a final wave she stepped out of the sliding glass door and made sure to close it behind her before she took off into the night.

In the middle of the city far from both Jadeite's apartment and the events at the carnival a man slowly stumbled down a rarely used alley. The man wore burnt clothing and even his hair was burnt at the ends making it appear that he had recently escaped a house fire. It was no survivor though. Nephrite paused briefly and leaned upon his halberd for support. That little bitch had drained him even more than he originally thought. He had attempted to make it back to the Dark Kingdom but he couldn't get enough energy together for the journey.

The man didn't have a way back to the Dark Kingdom…but het could sense the power of that stupid girl that Jadeite left unattended. While his power was too low for Jadeite to pick up right now he could sense out the Eastern Shitennou and that annoying Sailor V. The two were able to mask their powers to a certain extent. The Guardian though…she clearly had no idea and it was about to cost her more than she could ever imagine. He could feel her moving away from the others. She was heading towards him. He may be weak now but eventually she'd stop and then he'd find her. While she slept he would slice her pretty little head from her body and then he'd return to the Dark Kingdom a hero. He was a patient man…another few days would be enough time to recharge enough of his strength to deal with her. In the mean time he’d find her home, study her schedule, and track her family.

 

A/N: Well here we go a bit of a cliff hanger and a conclusion to the first battle. Please read and review. Let me know what you guys think of what I am doing with the Outers and any other issues you have. I'd like to again thank my beta Fleury's Apprentice70 for prettying up the story and generally making the entire thing readable. I'd like to thak Ms.Audrey G, Lady Tsumetai, Lucyole, Kai2, AvoidedIsland and someonecool for the reviews. They are always appreciated. For someone cool since he is the only one I couldn't PM, glad you are enjoying the story so far and hopefully the fun continues! Also for Dudleygirl well…wish granted. The Sailor Armor for Usagi is specific to her for them moment. I had to give her a leg up since she started out without a guardian to speak of…though she kinda has Artemis now. The other reason is that I wanted her to be able to battle on her own as I find that Sailor Moon in the anime and magna is more of a finisher. I want her to be able to battle as well and not just get beat up until her allies can weaken the enemy enough for her to overwhelm them with her attacks. Depending on how things play out Minako may or may not get an upgrade and the same with the other Scouts. It is need based but since I will probably be making stronger enemies the answer is probably going to be yes it is a new take on the uniforms.

 

 


	5. The Storm King Appears

A/N: I’m not dead yet! Sorry I know it has been a while. Hope you all enjoyed the last chapter. I think I've got a nice set up going with everything. There will be a few unexpected twists and turns you people will either love or hate. I was debating adding in a part about the Tokyo Police Dept. and the aftermath but I figured people probably weren't that into O.C.'s and what they're up to. If I'm wrong let me know and I'll add a little more in about it. Again 3/4ths is the best view. For best formatting read find the story on fanfiction.net

Chapter 4: The Storm King appears

Dark Kingdom:  
Beryl tapped her fingers impatiently awaiting for the arrival of Zoisite. As per usual the man—the most insubordinate of the four— did not run on her schedule. She glanced at the one that reported on time: the silent leader of the Shitennou, Kunzite, the only one she truly cared about keeping under her control of the four. He was the only one that actually listened to her orders and her one hope to complete the mission bequeathed upon her by their true Queen. An annoyed sigh escaped her ruby lips. Nephrite disappeared completely. His power signature vanished when he went off for his last mission and never reported back. She sent out Zoisite to track him down but much to her consternation there was no sign of the missing Shitennou.

Right before she sent Kunzite off to go find that floundering idiot, Zoisite finally made his appearance. The doors to her throne room were pushed open without even a knock as was expected of the impudent and short tempered man. She had to stop herself from rolling her eyes in annoyance and instead leveled the man with an icy glare. The young Shitennou came to a stop before her throne and knelt before her next to Kunzite. "Zoisite, so glad to see you could find the time to join us."

Zoisite's fist tightened and bit his tongue in annoyance. The damn witch pissed him off. He never could understand how Nephrite or Kunzite could stand the raging bitch and her unreasonable demands. When that damned fool had failed to return—surprise surprise that he got himself killed after he warned the arrogant bastard—he had of course been sent to find the idiot. Predictably he couldn't find the missing Shitennou and despite sending his Youma out to trace Nephrite's power signature they returned empty handed. So a week was wasted trying to find someone that was either dead or didn't want to be found. If he had to guess it was the former.

"As you know Nephrite has still not shown himself and at this point I have to assume he is dead. No doubt the fool would be causing us trouble if he turned. This leaves us in a delicate position. Nephrite failed to retrieve any energy on his last mission and our Queen grows impatient."

She paused for a moment her eyes never leaving her remaining Shitennou. "I don't have to tell you that if we fail to gather the required energy soon our current status may be in danger. If the Queen deigns to let Lord Death and his Horsemen take over the operation I don't believe I will have to spell it out to you as to what will happen to us."

Kunzite shifted slightly before finally looking up to meet his queen's eyes. His voice was a much deeper timber than Zoisite's and unlike Nephrite's that was full of emotion had a dead quality to it. "What would you propose my Queen?"

"It isn't exactly like Jadeite is going to give us free reign of the city," Zoisite groused. "I say we just move the entire operation out of Japan. Let the Horsemen deal with the Princess. Let them be hacked apart by her Guardian while we gather power and swoop in to take their prize when they are weakened from the prolonged fight that is sure to take place. "

Beryl chuckled lightly at Zoisite's suggestions. Despite his many annoying traits he never ceased to amuse her. Perhaps one day he'd learn some patience but she doubted it. Even with his mind firmly under her control she could never change his true personality much to her exasperation. Despite it all a soft smile full of mirth crossed her face. "A worthy idea my loyal servant, but it isn't just the Princess we seek." 

She paused. "I am also working to bring Jadeite back into the fold."

Zoisite raised a delicate eyebrow at that statement. A way to bring Jadeite back under control? To the best of his knowledge, Beryl had done everything to bring Jadeite back but to no avail. If she truly could bring him back…well, he was interested. Whatever the devious witch had uncovered it must be something most powerful. Still he had his doubts and no inclination to hold them back. "And how would we ever get him back? The man is a stubborn ass…more so than even Nephrite."

"Ah Zoisite, surely you trust your Queen's judgment?" Beryl had to hold back the chuckle from the dirty look the young Shitennou threw her at her less than acceptable answer. Even Kunzite had pinned her with a look of interest at a way to bring Jadeite under her control again. She had expected the response from Zoisite, the man was nothing if not cunning. It was the look that Kunzite held that disturbed her. The tall man had never shown any kind of interest in anything other than her orders prior to this. Were the spells failing or had she misread Kunzite this entire time? She was slightly perturbed and knew that if either of them got a hold of what she was working on it wouldn't bode well for her. It would be even worse if Endymion got wind of it. She let the question hang in the air a moment before prodding the two along to confirm they were still at least for now under her control. Serious doubts were starting to come to light especially with Nephrite disappearing. "Well?"

"Of course my Queen. Your judgment is above reproach," Zoisite ground out through clenched teeth.

"Your will is mine, My Queen," Kunzite responded in a silky tone as he once again averted his eyes.

"Kunzite you shall stay here for the time being. I will need you should Endymion and his little harlots attempt something while we are weak," Beryl ordered after much consideration. Kunzite could not be lost to the Guardian of the Moon Princess. While she could probably overpower Endymion it would be up to Kunzite to hold off the remaining Horsemen. It was unfortunate that she had allowed Nephrite to be her point man. It was arguable that Zoisite was more powerful than Nephrite but she felt the Shitennou of the West could overpower the Shitennou of the South despite the strategic mind that Zoisite held.

"Zoisite, with Nephrite missing in action I will leave the collection of energy in your capable hands. If you come across Nephrite you are to proceed with caution. If he has been lost to Jadeite you are to eliminate him." Beryl ordered with a grim line crossing her face. It was something she didn't want to acknowledge but it was a possibility. Death would be much more preferable but Jadeite had shown interest in the past of turning the Shitennou.

"And once more I become nothing more than an errand boy. Until next time my Queen." Zoisite sneered before he phased out of existence before the two.

Kunzite kept his head down to await his Queen's pleasure. He let his eyes close in slight annoyance over Zoisite's entire personality. Sometimes the youngest Shitennou tested even his legendary patience but he was a good solider. He held his emotions in and kept his face completely blank.

"Kunzite…" Beryl spoke after a few moments to scan her surroundings. The last thing she wanted was for Endymion's annoying cat to learn of their projects. "How long until you complete project Regicide?"

"It will be operational within the next couple days or less." Kunzite responded calmly. "It has been built to your specifications and is responding properly to all commands including the failsafe."

"Excellent." Beryl laughed softly. She could almost taste victory. Her plan was underhanded, sneaky, and questionable in its morality. It suited her perfectly. Once project Regicide was completed it would give her all the time in the world to find the Princess while keeping Jadeite and Endymion busy chasing shadows.

"I must return my Queen," Kunzite said softly before he warped out of the throne room and returned to his personal labs. He slowly stood and surveyed his surroundings. Much like him, the labs were very Spartan in decoration. There were a few metal lab tables clear of anything not in use. The tiles of the floor and ceiling were a metallic grey and the walls a dull white. Recessed lighting in the walls gave off bright light that bathed the room in an antiseptic glow of ethereal white. At the end of the lab sat a row of large tubes each with a vaguely humanoid form in some stage of development. The back lighting that lit up the tubes made it hard to see any details from a distance. As he got closer it became apparent that the center tube held a humanoid that was the furthest along.

Some of the Youma he had created to care for the project were currently checking the vitals. Others sat above the tank and were slowly feeding information directly into the projects. Upon awakening the programming would be useful. The projects wouldn't even know that they had been programmed. Kunzite let a small smile of mirth cross his face as he placed his hand upon the glass. Yes the project would never even know until it was too late. He often wondered what would happen once it realized what it had done. Would it cry or would it shut down. In the end he supposed it didn't matter. The corner of his lip twitched in excitement at the prospect of being there when Jadeite, Sailor V, and that new Guardian died at the hands of someone they would put all of their faith into. With one last look at the project he turned his attention to one of the other projects.

This one was his own personal project. Inside the tube floated a half developed being that was growing faster than anticipated. It's hair would match Sailor V's exactly if it were to be extracted from the clear gelatinous liquid. Over the years of fighting he had recovered enough of the Sailor's DNA to create a workable replica. Of course there were some issues which led to continued instability but he corrected those issues for the most part. It bothered him that something drove him to create her. Why? It wasn't exactly like he had an emotional connection to her. In fact he had only fought her once. Most of the time he would scavenge through the battlefield after the participants left to find her DNA. If he was honest, it was something deep down that he couldn't explain compelled him to do it. With a shake of his head he backed away from the clone's tube. It was too late to think about such matters.

"Inform me when they are ready to be activated." Kunzite glanced over at the other forms in the other test tubes. He shuddered a little despite being so used to seeing them it still gave him the creeps. Inside the remaining three tubes rested men that would eventually match him completely. He had come to the conclusion that as he was the superior Shitennou it behooved him to replace the remaining Shitennou with himself. It was good luck that Nephrite disappeared. Now he only had to deal with Zoisite…but not quite yet. It would have to wait until he could activate his new team to remove the remaining member of his original team. He retired to his bedroom that was adjacent to his lab and would attempt to sleep. Hopefully tonight the infernal Sailor V would not plague his dreams.

Zoisite phased back into existence in one of the many interconnecting hallways. He was just about to head down the halls towards his section of the dark castle when an arm suddenly blocked his path. He glanced at the offending appendage for a moment. Unfortunately the hallways were not exactly large. Recessed lighting, dark stone, and narrow halls saw to that. It could barely fit three people shoulder to shoulder. And the person blocking him wasn't exactly small. He favored Conquest with a sneer. "What do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

"Just wondering how long you're gonna last down there is all," Conquest said darkly. She towered over the small man and let her height do most of the work but for effect she leaned in a little. Makoto gave the Shitennou a once over and barely kept in a scoff. She never understood how Beryl had originally taken down the Moon Kingdom with the help of these weaklings.

Zoisite grunted a little before he attempted to push past the Amazonian woman but found himself pushed back with little more than a palm to the chest from Conquest. "I don't have time for your little intimidation tactics you giant gorilla." He growled as he once more attempted to duck under Conquest's arm.

"Aww…you're hurtin' my feelings Zoisite. I thought we were all friends here. A nice big happy family and here you're trying to get away from me." She laughed a little as she pushed the man back without much effort on her part.

"Just get to the god damn point," Zoisite exploded without little more provocation. He was tired of this bitch and her little intimidation tactics. At least Famine didn't really talk to him and War would either make snide remarks or vague predictions. Either way it was less of a hassle than interacting with Conquest.

Conquest laughed and grabbed Zoisite by his shirt, dragging him closer. "I'm just here to help. Some of my sources tell me that your leader may not be the perfect little Boy Scout Beryl believes him to be. I don't know what he's up to but I'd wager whatever it involves probably doesn't favor you either."

Zoisite grunted in annoyance. He almost had to stand on his tippy toes to keep from choking as the female warrior's gripped tightened around the edges of his lapel. Despite the rough handling he couldn't help his curiosity from being piqued. He studied Conquest's face looking for any signs of deceit. Unfortunately he only found a smug look of satisfaction.

"I'm not asking you to believe me. I'm just giving you a friendly heads up," Conquest said before releasing Zoisite.

Zoisite rubbed his neck gently with his right hand before favoring Conquest with a deadpan stare. "And I'm sure you're doing all of this because you had an epiphany about how we should be working together."  
"Hardly…I warned you so maybe you'd be able to prepare. I figure the more damage you do the less work for the Horsemen." Makoto ended her thought with a shrug before she turned around and started to walk away from the little Shitennou. Objectively she knew she shouldn't turn her back to a potential enemy but she somehow doubted he'd ever have the balls to actually attack her. "Good luck, you'll need it." Makoto declared before she started to let herself phase out of existence.

Zoisite watched with pursed lips as Conquest started to dematerialize as she walked away from him. The Horsemen were not known for their helpfulness. Was this all an attempt to sow the seeds of discord within the Shitennou? If it was one of the others he'd be more inclined to brush the warning off but Conquest was nothing if not direct. She never bothered with deception or even subtlety. He found himself silently cursing both Jadeite and Nephrite. As much as he hated to admit it, he just didn't have the power to take Kunzite down alone if he went rogue. While Kunzite killing Beryl didn't exactly cause him any anguish it would put him in a bad position. Without Beryl around to head off the Horsemen well it wouldn't be good for him.

With one last stray glance towards where Conquest disappeared, Zoisite headed towards his room contemplating the information that she had so freely provided. While the issue would be something he'd have to look into he had more important issues at hand. Mainly he needed to find a way to get energy and quick if he was to survive.

 

 

Earth  
"Again," Jadeite ordered with a disapproving glare. Really did she exist just to waste his time and piss him off? Minako wasn't helping either. Once again she shoved off any real work on him by claiming she was no good at teaching someone swordplay. He grumbled to himself just thinking about that argument. They both knew damn well that she was faking her memory loss about how to sword fight but of course she just argued that she couldn't generate a sword like he could.

Without even glancing at Usagi he neatly sidestepped her clumsy rush and disarmed her by hitting the back of her hand with his hilt. He closed his eyes at the ensuing commotion as Usagi tripped over her own weapon and went tumbling into the nearby bushes. A wince managed to cross his face when he heard Usagi's body hit a tree. "I still don't understand why you're not training her. She is one of yours."

Minako looked up from her homework that was actually her latest pop magazine instead of her actual history homework. She took in her surroundings and found that Usagi was in the trees again and Jadeite had not moved from his starting position by more than a foot in total distance despite the fact they had been training for half an hour now. "And I told you all her attacks seem to be sword based. I specifically am magical chain oriented. Once she can throw some beam like attacks I'll take over but fire and sword stuff is all you."

Jadeite snorted in annoyance. "Seems more like you're being lazy and passing the buck onto me." Without acknowledging Usagi he spun around and met her latest clumsy strike with the blade of his katana. Without much effort he knocked the blade from her hand with a quick spin that broke her weak grip. He followed it up with a quick palm thrust directly into her stomach right under her armor that sent her flying backwards into the tree she had just hit not a minute before. "That was pathetic! I told you to keep a flexible grip on your weapon. Not too tight not too loose. Absorb the blows and bounce back. You should be like a tightly wound rubber ball. Take my momentum and turn it against me!" He commanded harshly. If he didn't knock it into her now she'd die in the field. At this point it had only been luck and the providence of the fates that had kept her alive this long.

"Well if you gave me a freaking chance maybe I'd learn something other than getting my ass handed to me!" Usagi yelled while rubbing her tender stomach. It was completely unfair. She had come out her expecting a training session with Sailor V and instead she got tall, dark, and miserable. If she thought she could get away, she would have run away but knowing the grueling task master that was Jadeite he would just grab her and drag her back. With a groan she realized her sword had disappeared into the brush. She started to walk towards where she last saw the blade when a column of fire just flew over her head. With a shriek she dove into the bushes. "What the hell Jadeite!"

"Your enemies won't wait for you to go find your lost weapon. We're done warming up; it is time for the real training to start," Jadeite responded with a slight smirk. He eyed Minako's complete immersion with her magazine. It wouldn't hurt if the blonde got some training as well after the last battle. Without any warning he called forth a whip of fire and cleanly cut her magazine and homework in half.

Minako nearly fell off her seat in surprise. She stared in horror at what was left of her magazine. She held the remaining edges of her magazine in either hand while the middle had been split in half and was completely blackened from the fire whip. Little embers were slowly floating away in the wind as she attempted to compute what had just happened. Where her Justin Timberlake used to be there was nothing left but the edges of his shoulders in either of her hands. She looked back and forth between the two burned pieces for a moment before slowly getting up and turning to face Jadeite. "I wasn't done reading that article." She said softly a hint of steel behind her voice. "If I run into Justin I won't know his favorite song and I won't be able to impress him enough to go out with me!"

"Aww…throwing a temper tantrum over me destroying the handsome man in the magazine? Why go looking for one when you have one right in front of you?" Jadeite mocked with a smirk. It appeared he had gotten Minako's attention. Now it was time to teach her the benefit of getting it over with and not being so damn slow. "Anyway isn't he married?"

"Not after I woo him off his feet!" Minako retaliated petulantly before she started to power up. The blonde held up her hand and started her transformation process. The tips of her fingers started to glow before the blonde started a graceful pirouette. "Venus Star!" She was interrupted half way through her transformation by a swift kick in the stomach. With a grunt she doubled over and the glow faded away as she lost her concentration. It was only her naturally quick reactions that saved her from Jadeite's follow up blow. She gasped in surprise when his fist passed right over the spot her head occupied a moment ago. "What the hell Jadeite!"

"I've told you time and time again that you're going to get yourself killed if you keep up with your showmanship. No one gives a crap about your spinning pretty, pretty princess routine and certainly not bioengineered monsters." With a growl he brought his free fist under Minako and caught her in the stomach. The blow lifted the blonde off the ground and into the air. He would have continued his assault if he didn't have to turn his attention briefly to Usagi. It was fine. It'd give Minako a moment to try transforming again. If she didn't do it quickly he'd just continue using her as a punching bag.

Usagi almost couldn't believe it. She knew that Jadeite was a hardass but she was starting to think he was mentally unstable. In the time she took to recover her sword he had just started attacking Minako out of the blue! This was not what she had in mind for training. She was not exactly alright with this trial by fire method. She already had enough of it with the last few fights for her life. Why did Jadeite feel the need to continue that into her training? Even worse the jackass actually appeared to be enjoying beating the crap out of her. With a growl she hefted the large sword up and decided to try a new approach. Aim for his crotch. Without a sound she aimed the large sword as best she could before she took off like a rocket in an attempt to castrate her trainer.

In a flash Jadeite tensed his legs before leaping over Usagi's clumsy strike. He gracefully flipped over Usagi before bringing his feet around and landing both of them into her back. There was just enough force to send Usagi tumbling into the recovering Minako. Sometimes he wondered how Minako made it this far with how showy she tended to be. If he had to guess it was a combination of luck and incompetence of the enemy. He put his thoughts to the side as he landed in his starting position before turning to the pair and decided to rub it in. "If I have to rely on you two for support at this rate we'll be lucky to find the Moon Princess and the King of Earth by the time we're retired from our day jobs. Seriously it shouldn't be that hard to land a hit on me or transform in under five minutes."

"Well some people have no appreciation for the arts. You're clearly an uncultured plebian. Since you're from Earth you have no taste of the higher forms of fighting," Minako countered with a cool glare. After disentangling herself from Usagi she held up her fingers and once again started to gather power around her nails. "You want fast asshole. I'll show you fast."

"Waiting," Jadeite responded with a slight smirk crossing his lips. He impatiently tapped his hand against his wrist where his watch would have been had he been in civilian uniform.

"You're such a jackass," Usagi muttered as she slowly picked herself off the ground and brought her sword up to a guard stance. It still amazed her that she recovered from blows that would have put her down or possibly resulted in a broken bone mere weeks ago. Despite this power she was still having a hard time appreciating that she was involved in all of this. It didn't help that Jadeite forced her to actually study to keep up their cover to her parents.

"Oh yeah, you mess with Timberlake you mess with the power of love and as the ambassador of love on Earth, I'll punish you!" Minako half growled half screamed at Jadeite as a yellow beam of light encased her body. A moment later the light disappeared and left Minako as Sailor Venus.

Jadeite couldn't help but quirk a questioning eyebrow in response to Minako's random declaration. "Ambassador of love? What the hell does that even mean?"

Usagi glanced over at her idol in askance at her declaration as well. "Um…yeah…hate to throw in with the jackass but I don't think that'd be recognized by anyone."

"It means Usa and I are going to kick your ass!" Minako yelled in response as she casually flicked the golden chain made of hearts off of her waist and cracked it across the ground for effect. She hated when he did this. It wasn't the first time he used her as a punching bag under the guise of helping her improve. Granted she needed some motivation now and again but he really knew how to push her buttons. Despite what he may think about her, she was the leader of the Senshi for a reason and it wasn't because of a pretty face. "Anyway, my powers are based on love." She added petulantly as an aside to Usagi.

"Right…" Usagi agreed hesitantly. Well she was getting her wish in a way so there was no point in looking a gift horse in the mouth. Granted it was not exactly what she wanted, but if it gave her a shot at taking that smug look off Jadeite's face she was in.

Artemis watched the training from one of the taller trees that surrounded the small park the group had made their regular meeting ground. He sighed a little in annoyance as he felt another breeze blow through the tree and he flexed his claws a little to dig into the tree to keep from blowing away. Since they were stuck training in the open he was unfortunately elected to be the lookout. Once again he the official handler of the Sailor Senshi was relegated to a menial task that was beneath his skill set.

The harsh sound of metal on metal followed by a scream from both girls caused Artemis to wince. With his extra sensitive hearing he could hear every failed attack with startling clarity. Sometimes he really wished he was deaf. With nothing better to do he stared down through the pine needles of the tree he sat in and watched the two girls below attempt another strike on Jadeite. Once again the two failed to coordinate and once again Jadeite ended up dodging Minako's attacks while sending Usagi into the bushes.

The team—and he used that word loosely—needed work. If he was honest…his charge was a showoff. Minako went for the flashy attacks that gave Jadeite and her enemies multiple openings to hit her. Jadeite just never played well with others. He probably had the most battle experience but he had a hard time truly coordinating a battle with others. Sure he could work with Minako to coordinate attacks but the ebb and flow of the battle eluded him. He would never be a true leader he was too much of a solo act. Finally it left him with Usagi. She was green and while powerful she couldn't bring that power to bear.  
What Artemis did see in Usagi was a leader. There were times when she seemed to almost slip into a different personality. When she got angry enough the other two listened. What was odd to him was how automatic it was. They deferred instantly to her judgment without even thinking about it. Something was there just at the edge of his mind. He could sense it. He let out a groan and put a paw over his face. A headache was coming on and once again he wished that Luna was still with them.

Jadeite stared at the two in boredom as he once more threw back the attempted over and under attack the two used. Predictable…they were both too predictable. If the two of them even attempted to work together and keep up a rotating attack pattern he'd be finished. But that was why he still stood here uninjured. The two kept up the same attack pattern and it allowed him to counter their moves before they even made them.

"So am I going to be beating on the two of you all day or are you two going to actually start taking this seriously soon?" Jadeite mocked the pair with a slight smirk. A quick flick of his wrist brought his sword up to block Minako's chain. The golden glowing chain wrapped around the sword quickly before it started to glow stronger. "Shit!" Jadeite only managed to get one word out.

"Venus Love Chain Explosion!" Minako finished her attack with a final charge of her powers before she let go of the magical chain and watched with satisfaction as it completed its self-destruct sequence. The Shitennou ran his big mouth the entire time and it was about time she caught him flat footed. Minako quickly recalled the chain as the explosion of magical energy lifted Jadeite off the ground and right into Usagi's path.

Usagi brought her sword up like a baseball bat as Jadeite flew right towards her. With a grin she started to swing at him but mid swing her sword disappeared. Her armor and transformation followed suit. The items turned into a silver light and faded away. It left her a moment later in her normal street clothes much to her surprise. Usagi felt the cold reassuring touch of her amulet that rested around her neck. She could only stare in surprise as Jadeite sailed right by her before landing in a heap on the ground. "Umm…what happened?"

"You mean other than using your sword like it was a baseball bat?" Artemis interjected with a hint of amusement. The white cat had decided that there was no point in him staying on guard duty since training would clearly be over now that Usagi had lost her powers for the moment.

"Well it would have worked…" Usagi trailed off petulantly. She stuck her tongue out at the little white cat.

"Very mature," Artemis responded dryly before he sighed a little. Looked like he'd have to play teacher once again since Minako was currently poking Jadeite's smoking body with a stick…and Jadeite was understandably down for the count. "When you run out of energy you lose your ability to maintain the transformation and return to your civilian form."

"But that doesn't make any sense! Jadeite and Minako never lose their powers and I was powered up way longer during the last battle!" Usagi responded in a questioning tone. It was still odd enough that she was actually having a conversation with a cat but he did seem to know a lot about her powers.

"Well of course." Artemis chuckled. "They've got years of experience. They burn their energy efficiently whereas you haven't learned to stabilize your power yet," Artemis instructed calmly. "It also has to do with how much food you've consumed. Just powering up consumes a lot of power. Ever wonder why Jadeite and Minako eat so much?" He chuckled slightly at that comment. Eat was an understatement of course. He had seen some things he couldn't unsee…like the time that Minako practically ate an all you care to eat buffet out of food after a particularly hard battle. The way she had eaten the food…the memory alone caused him to shudder involuntarily.

"Wait…you mean these powers are like going to the gym without actually all the hard working out parts?" Usagi sounded out her theory to Artemis very slowly. If this was what the little cat meant that would be possibly the greatest gift ever. Suddenly the powers were back in the positive column. In fact it meant she could literally eat anything she wanted with no drawbacks! Her eyes became unfocused and a thin line of drool started to form at the corner of her lip as she started muttering to herself. "Chocolate shake…no no no a chocolate peanut butter shake. Or a chocolate oreo shake with cookie chunks."

"Um…Usagi…" Artemis ventured before he hesitantly tapped her with his paw. No response. He sighed in dejection. Perhaps she wasn't the leader that he had been hoping for. This was exactly what happened when he told Minako the same thing when they had first met. She had taken it as a free pass to completely stop working out and eating whatever she pleased. One would think that the girls would take their duty a little more seriously and not for vanity reasons. "Great I lost another one."

"What'd ya lose Artemis?" Minako looked up from her prodding of Jadeite in an attempt to get him to respond. She quickly lost interest when the tip of the stick she poked Jadeite with to start smoldering. It wasn't a normal occurrence for her to get the drop on Jadeite or to put him into the ground like that. She was getting concerned since he was just lying there smoldering. "Hey Jadeite…you dead?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all." Artemis responded with a sigh. "I'm pretty sure the fact you're poking him with a stick isn't helping…" Artemis ventured as he watched the scene unfold. A doctor, Minako would never be. In what universe would medical science be replaced by poking the patient with a stick? Whatever one it was he wanted to stay far…far…far away from it. In fact that universe would be up there with Minako as a world leader, Minako as the Princess of the Moon, and Minako as a professor of science. All scary thoughts that would sometimes keep him up at night just wondering what if.

"Should we be doing something?" Usagi said as she watched Minako's questionable diagnostic attempts to confirm if she had indeed killed their friend. If she was honest it was quite easy to confirm he was alive. Despite the smoldering she could spot the steady rise and fall of his chest.

Artemis shook his head. "It's like fighting a riptide. Fighting it just drags you further into the crazy. Best to ride the current and swim parallel before making your way back to sanity."

"How would you know about riptides? Isn't the moon kinda barren of water?" Usagi responded without missing a beat. She didn't even bother to turn; she was too enraptured by the scene in front of her. It was just a matter of time at this point before Jadeite came to and freaked the hell out on Minako.

"You realize I'm a magical cat that can read correct?" Artemis queried petulantly. "There is this thing called Google."

"Well yeah…I just figured…ya know…" Usagi trailed off.

"What?" Artemis responded with a huff. "That just because I'm a cat, I can't operate a mouse? I mean come on! It's called a mouse and it has a laser in it, I'm a cat! Shouldn't it be implied that I'd be efficient that handling something like that?"

"Well no…I mean…you're kinda old…I thought the internet would kinda scare you." Usagi responded with a nervous smile.

"I'm not that old." Artemis huffed before turning his head away in an offended manner. "Besides it isn't appropriate to ask a cat their age."

"Well it isn't like it really matters." Minako interjected while taking a break from poking Jadeite. "I mean you're going to die years before us all anyway right?"

"What part of magical cat do you two not understand!" Artemis responded hotly with a frown on his face.

"I guess the part where you don't wash your hands even though you're fully well aware of how disgusting it is not to." Usagi responded with a slight smirk.

"Yeah that is still pretty disgusting Artemis." Minako commented absently while she continued to poke Jadeite with a stick.

"Why do I try…" Artemis muttered in a defeated tone before he plopped down on the ground with his head between his paws.

"Wish I could tell you." Usagi responded with a smirk before she started petting Artemis after she received a baleful look for her comment from the small white cat. "Oh calm down you're about as uptight as Jadeite is."

Artemis wisely bit his tongue as he knew any response to the counter would only invite further verbal abuse and mental torment. Instead he decided to just shut up and enjoy the attention he received at the hands of Usagi. At least she gave him attention now and again. Minako normally just use him as a fuzzy cleaner for hard to reach places.

"Come on Jade…don't be dead. Jade, Jade, Jade, Jade, Jadddeeeee." Minako continued in an annoyingly sing song voice. She knew he hated the nick name and was legitimately becoming concerned. He was just lying there and hadn't responded to any of her prodding or poking. At first it was fun to poke and prod him with the stick and she couldn't lie, the fact she managed to get the stick to smolder off of his smoking clothing was an achievement in her book, but it'd be no good if she actually killed him. Minako glanced over at Usagi and Artemis but it sounded like a boring conversation so she turned back to poking Jadeite. She gasped in surprise when Jadeite's hand suddenly shot up and grabbed the stick she had been poking him with.

Jadeite laid there content in the darkness but the constant poking finally woke him up from the blast. He felt like he went through a blender. Oh hubris thou are a cruel mistress, he thought with some amount of mirth. With a small shudder he shot his hand out and grabbed the item currently poking him. He slowly blinked his crispy eye lids and was afraid to even see what he might look like. For the moment though he had to deal with the annoying poking and he managed to zero in on Minako. Of course who else would blow someone up and then immediately start poking them with a stick as a way to check for survival and vitals. "Seriously Minako…what the hell…I could've been seriously injured and you sit here poking me with a stick?"

"Hey!" Minako responded hotly. "You're the one that pushed me! If you weren't such an insurmountable jackass l'd never had to use my love chain explosion." She huffed a little before pulling the stick out of Jadeite's hand. After inspecting it for any evidence of remaining embers she discarded it as it no longer held any interest. "Well…you gonna be alright?"

"Your concern is so touching and you really sound like an abusive boyfriend. So glad that in this relationship I'm the girl that keeps coming back because you promised you changed this time." Jadeite responded dryly. At the blank look Minako was giving him, Jadeite simply sighed in defeat. "Never mind, yes I'm fine."

"Good cause remember I signed us all up as a group for the charity walk tonight!" Minako responded with enthusiasm. "I put it all together so we're a team! I even got a tent!"

"A tent?" Jadeite queried hesitantly. He had a bad feeling that this entire thing was about to turn into a huge production. The star of which would be Minako and of course he would be along for the ride. After seeing that he caught Usagi and Artemis's attention. Jadeite decided to complete his thought and receive an answer he was fairly certain he didn't have any interest in hearing. "Why would we need a tent? This is a charity walk not a sleep over."

"Umm….yeahh…about that…" Minako responded quickly while twiddling her thumbs. She looked down at the ground as she debated how to answer this. She may have fudged the description of the walk a little…but it was for a good cause! "Promise you won't be mad?"

"Not even if you paid me." Jadeite responded from his position on the ground.

"I never agreed to sleeping outside if that is why you bought a tent." Usagi responded with a slight pout.

Minako laughed nervously. "Yeah you see they had the option of doing a 12 hour walk-a-thon or a 4 hour walk-a-thon soooo obviously I picked the longer option which goes all night. As long as we have someone walking we're entered in for the grand prize!" Minako responded quickly before she gasped when she realized she may have said too much.

"Oh! Grand Prize! What kinda grand prize!" Usagi responded with excitement once more entering her tone. Now that may be worth staying up all night for. Especially if it was something awesome like an all paid expenses trip to an island getaway or maybe an overseas vacation. Her eyes started to sparkle with excitement at the prospects of her sunning herself on the beach surrounded by half naked men serving her drinks.

"Oh yeah what kinda grand prize, Minako? Sure it wouldn't disproportionately favor you at all." Jadeite said with a heavy amount of sarcasm. Whatever it was he was sure that is was going to be something that'd make him angry. If not just piss him off royally. On the plus side it'd give him something to mock her for once more. Like Jadeite didn't already have a rolodex of items in his memory to bring up anytime he wanted to provoke the blonde.

"Wellllllll…..ummmm….It'sachancetomeetJustinTimberlakeanditwillbesoawesomesojustbecool!" Minako quickly spit out her explanation before she made an exaggerated look at her wrist as if it contained a watch. "Oh wow look at the time! Well I gotta go home and get ready! I'll see you all tonight!" Before Usagi or Jadeite could make any kind of response the blonde was off like a shot and had disappeared from sight a moment later as she was still powered up.

"So…ummm…" Usagi tried to say something in some concern for Minako's quick disappearance. Truthfully she was still trying to translate Minako's garbled explanation. All Usagi knew was that it sounded like the ground prize wasn't anything she was really interested in and couldn't exactly identify Minako's obsession.

"I'll meet you at the school track tonight for the walk." Jadeite responded with a groan as he pulled himself up to a sitting position and surveyed the damage to his outfit. Once again he found himself thanking whatever magical interdimensional cleaning genie that somehow magically made his uniform spotless after every transformation. With a snap of his fingers he felt his powers disappear in a flash of fire. With a final grunt he pushed himself off the ground and started to stumble off towards his apartment in order to take a nap before the event since it appeared he'd be up all night.

"Right so thanks for leaving me here alone without any ability to get home quickly." Usagi grumbled to herself as she worked on gathering her things. Seriously, had none of these people heard of something like manners? Both of them had some kind of aversion to being decent human beings. Well Jadeite she understood to a certain extent…he was just a jerk that did his own thing without any apologies…and well Minako…yeah she could be a bit of an airhead. Perhaps it wasn't such a surprise after all. Maybe it was her fault for expecting too much from the both of them. "I swear I will beat the manners into the both of them one of these days." She grumbled to herself.

"Hey wait a second I'm still here!" Artemis interjected with a hint of annoyance entering his tone.

"Well yeah…but well you're a cat not a person." Usagi said with a helpless shrug. After gathering up her backpack and books she threw the backpack of her shoulder and gave Artemis a final wave. "Well see you at the walk tonight!" With that Usagi rushed out of the small alcove of trees and headed towards home.

Artemis was left in the small clearing alone. With a sigh he dropped his head down and stared at the ground in defeat. Did she realize how hypocritical she was complaining about being left alone and then leaving him alone without pausing just as they had left her? "They're all hopeless…we're doomed." Artemis said morbidly. If they didn't start working together there was little hope of finding the Princess. He wondered briefly what Luna would do in this situation. 'Oh right she'd nag them until they got tired of it and started to listen to her.' The only problem was that he didn't have that ability.

Maybe he could reason with the Dark Kingdom. Convince them to wait a few years until his charges matured enough not to act like irresponsible teenagers. Alright maybe it wasn't that realistic but it was all he had at the moment. Right. So once again he was left to fend for himself and no one cared a wit if he was around or not. With a groan he realized that the Princess would probably also be a teenager. In fact she'd probably be in one of the high schools in the area which meant it would be doubtful that she'd take his side. Artemis lingered on for a moment longer before he jumped back into the trees and started the long journey to Minako's house.

Usagi was lost in her own world walking towards her house at a casual stroll when she was pulled from her introspection by a familiar voice. Her head shot up as she responded with a less than intelligent. "Huh?"  
"You're such a ditz sometimes I swear it is amazing you aren't in detention more often." Naru half lectured in a sing song voice as she closed the distance between the two and matched Usagi's pace. The red headed girl shot a smile at one of her best friends since elementary.

"Hey! It's not my fault the teachers can't appreciate my unique perspective on how to absorb material." Usagi responded petulantly before crossing her arms across her chest and dramatically swinging her head to the side before fake sniffing. After a moment Usagi could no longer hold the superior look and broke out into giggles. A moment later Naru joined her.

"So what have you been up to lately? You seem to be prettttty chummy with the two new transfer students. Are you sure you're not dating Jadeite?" Naru asked before gently poking Usagi in the rib with her elbow while shooting her a knowing smile. "I mean you barely even have time to hang out with me anymore, you're always "studying" with Jadeite. Yet whenever I see you heading over to meet him you never have your books. Wonder why that is…" Naru trailed off with a mock thoughtful expression as she exaggerated tapping her chin in befuddlement over the situation.

"It's not like that!" Usagi responded quickly…too quickly she realized a moment later. A small blush hinted at her cheeks before she huffed upon seeing the quick smile that was spreading across Naru's face. Just what she needed, her best friend to think she was dating that jerk! She quickened her pace as she attempted to get away from Naru's prying, not that it'd help at all but she could hope.

"Me thinks the lady doth protest too much." Naru interjected with an exaggerated wag of her finger as she walked a little faster to catch up. A smirk blossomed across Naru's face as she caught the slight blush crossing her friend's face. "Besides you never told me what you three do together and why I can't come."

"We've started a band!" Usagi blurted out. It was the first thing that came to her mind as a valid excuse as to why Naru couldn't join. The moment she said it though she knew that she had just royally screwed the pooch. A band? Any other excuse would have been better. Literally. Anything.

"A band…" Naru asked with a quirk of her eyebrow and a cynical tone. "You really expect me to believe that you, the one with no musical talent, are part of a band?"

"Haha…just kidding!" Usagi laughed aloud in an exaggerated fashion as she quickly tried to come up with an excuse that wouldn't have Naru requesting to join them. As much as she hated to exclude her friend it wasn't exactly like one could just add her to the group. 'Oh yeah Naru we all have magical powers. Maybe if you hang out with us long enough you'll get some too!' Yeah it sounded just as crazy in her head as it would if she told her best friend that it was what was actually happening.

"I thought as much." Naru chuckled while shaking her head a little. "I swear Usagi, you and your crazy imagination."

"Yep just me being silly…" Usagi laughed awkwardly as she came to a stop at her house. She glanced at her friend who was still waiting for an answer. With a sigh she quickly decided to just use the easiest way out of this entire situation…ask for an extension of time and figure out a lie. Either that or beg the other two to let her tell Naru. Which if she was honest, wouldn't go over all with Jadeite, but she wasn't willing to lose a friend over this entire venture. "Look Naru, I can't tell you what we're doing but I promise it's important and I'll tell you soon alright?"

Naru paused at the serious inflection in Usagi's voice. The girl had never hidden anything from her. She concluded that it had to be important if Usagi was basically asking her to leave it be. For the moment at least... After thinking it over for a moment she gave Usagi a small nod. "Sure thing…just promise it isn't anything bad. I swear if he got you into drugs I'll kill him!" Naru smashed her fist into her other open hand to make sure Usagi got her point.

"No, no, nothing like that, I promise." Usagi laughed a little as she waved off the insinuation that Jadeite had gotten her into drugs. Really the chances of Mister Moodypants getting into drugs was as likely as him being nice to her for an entire day. Though perhaps it would explain his mood swings she thought with a silent giggle. "But I promise I'll explain it all!" Usagi reiterated once she had gotten over her silent giggle fit.

"Alright, well I'll see you tonight at the charity walk! I'm in for the four hour time slot with my team how about you?" Naru asked.

"Twelve hours," Usagi responded with a depressed sigh. It almost brought tears to her eyes just thinking about it. The actual horror of missing sleep was starting to set in. With the realization that she'd spend her entire night up or "sleeping" in a cold drafty tent the homicidal thoughts started. It was about the time Usagi was fantasizing about cutting Minako's hair in the middle of the night or dying it neon lavender that she realized that she was thinking like Jadeite would. A small shudder ran through her body as she shook her head to get the thought out of her head. No way would she influence her any more than he already had.

"How'd you get roped into that one…?" Naru laughed before a sly grin crept over her face. "Unless of course Jadeite was the one that proposed it?" She sighed dreamily. "Of course being such a great guy he'd devote his entire night to helping those with M.S."

"Er…you're getting a little creepy Naru and I really need to take a nap before this thing if I want to make it through the night." Usagi responded with a slight look of defeat. It really appeared that Naru was not going to give up this whole Jadeite thing which was unfortunate since there was absolutely nothing between the two.

"Alright see you tonight then!" Naru replied before drawing Usagi into a quick hug.

"Bye!" Usagi responded with a smile before releasing her friend. Usagi waited until her friend was out of sight before turning to face her house. She surveyed the house for a moment before she noted with a small frown that everything was dark. It wasn't normal for her family to all be out especially without telling her. Not that it hadn't happened on occasion. Still, the house was completely dark. How odd. "Just being waaay too paranoid about everything. I'm starting to think like Jadeite, always jumping at shadows." She said to herself before shaking off the bad feeling.

It didn't go away as she came closer to her front door. In fact it started to get worse. A quick glance around and she found that in fact the other houses around her were also dark. It was odd since most of the families in the area normally were home by now. In fact as she looked around the street and other than Naru who had been with her, there wasn't a single soul on the street. "Weird." She whispered to herself. "Stop jumping at shadows you aren't a little kid anymore."

With renewed determination she forced herself to march up to the door and pulled her key from her skirt pocket before slamming it into the lock. A moment later she turned the key to the right and pushed the door open into the dark house. "Hello! Mom, Dad! I'm home!" She called out into the darkness. After a brief pause she determined that no one was home. For a brief moment she hesitated before slipping into the house the rest of the way. 

Everything seemed amplified in the dark house. 

With a slight creak she closed the door with a resounding boom. Her hand quickly found the light and she almost jumped. For a brief moment she thought she saw a large man like shape near the kitchen. After looking back she didn't see anything. She laughed to herself. First thing first, she needed some food and she needed it bad. From how her stomach was growling anyway. 

The moment she entered the tiny kitchen area she spotted a note taped to the fridge. She pulled the note from the fridge and gave it a once over. With a groan she discovered that her family had gone to her favorite restaurant to celebrate Shingo's win at his soccer match earlier today. Well that explained the lack of family but it didn't really make her feel that much better. It just wasn't fair. She was so hungry and now she'd be left to cook up left overs. "They better at least bring dessert for me." She grumbled when she saw that they'd head right to the charity walk from dinner as indicated on the note.

Nephrite watched the girl silently from the darkened portion of the dining room. He couldn't have planned this better himself. The rest of her family was out and she was all alone. The stars had showed him that tonight would be the perfect night to attack and they his destiny would be revealed. It hadn't been the clearest reading though. Something was off about the entire thing. It wasn't something to focus on at the current time.

Nephrite watched impassively as the young girl ate her final meal. A light laugh left his lips causing the girl to jump up and look around. Nephrite withdrew further into the shadows. It would do no good to be caught and have her transform and escape. No he'd wait until she was in her room alone. He was still too weak to transform himself and he couldn't allow her the advantage. Luckily he'd liberated a knife from the family's knife block. He briefly wondered how the family would respond to finding their daughter in a pool of her own blood. It would be interesting to see if she would revert back to her true form from the Moon Kingdom and fade away or if she would stay human.

These were the questions that kept him up at night as odd as it was. Mainly, he wanted to know where in the hell she had come from. The visions told him nothing and while it may have made sense to torture the answers out of her…he felt it a more expedient goal to remove her completely from this world to stop the visions. Hopefully once she died the visions would stop and break any power she held over him.  
Nephrite paused for a moment longer not sure why he tarried when he had but a finite amount of time to get into position. Something about her just seemed familiar and it for a moment disgust bubbled up inside his gut at just the thought of the actions he was about to commit.

Ever since he had been touched by the Lunar brat he had been having odd memories pop into his head. At first he had wandered aimlessly around the city but eventually he was able to pick up her energy signature. It had taken him a full week since their last encounter to find her but she always took the same predictable path home. Always Westwards from what he surmised was the place she trained at. It had taken him longer than he'd like to admit but eventually he had pinpointed her location. That was two days ago. Two days he waited just on the edge of her radar. Waiting for the perfect time to strike. He had almost had her yesterday but right as he was going to make his move the visions struck.

He couldn't afford to let them take over. It was not the time to dally. Quiet as a ghost he slipped past the girl who was now completely concentrated on the food she was destroying. A slight feeling of disgust bubbled up but he viciously stamped it into the ground. No…no matter what the visions showed he had to trust the stars. His future would be revealed tonight and he would not let the visions or anything else get in the way. With little more than a whisper of displaced air he made his way upstairs.

Usagi looked up from her meal the noodles still hanging out of her mouth at the sound of a creaking door coming from upstairs. She finished slurping the noodles into her mouth before she slowly stood up from the kitchen table and took her bowl to the sink. The entire time she was debating if calling the cops was an acceptable recourse. Then again her parents probably wouldn't be too impressed with their sixteen year old daughter calling the police out for a creaky door. "Get a hold of yourself."

"Just have to go upstairs where the creaking came from and not find any murderers. Then I can get ready for the night and freeze my ass off. Then I can complain to Minako about her terrible idea." She continued to talk to herself as she slowly made her way up the steps. The moment she made it to the landing and clicked on the hallway lights she let out a sigh of relief. To her left was the door to her room and across from it the door to the main bathroom. Thankfully both were closed and the lights off just as they normally were. Unless Shingo got into her room but in that case she'd kill the twerp. Just to be sure though she glanced to her right to confirm the guest room, master bedroom, and Shingo's room were similarly closed.

Just as she thought. Complete and utter paranoia. Still for some reason she felt the urge to transform. But how ridiculous would that be. Walking around your own house with a giant sword would probably be overkill for what was probably the wind. Pushing aside the growing pit of doubt and fear in her stomach she made her way over to the door and pushed it open. She flipped the lights on with a sigh and stepped in completely before closing the door behind her.

Just as she thought as she scanned the room briefly. Bed, Dresser, computer desk, Nephrite, and her floor lamp. Just as she thought everything was in order. It took a moment for her to compute that Nephrite was in her room. The man looked like he had been through the blender. His hair was in complete disarray, his face hidden under a thick layer of grim, and tattered clothing. What caught her eye though was the knife. The knife coming right at her!

With a yell Nephrite charged at the young Guardian of the Moon Princess. The knife flashed against the light of the single floor lamp in the room. "DIE BITCH!"

Usagi's eyes widened in surprise and fear at the sudden flash of steel that appeared in Nephrite's hand before the man made a lunge towards her. She knew she should move but she couldn't find the will to move. Rooted to the spot in the ground she could only watch the knife come straight towards her heart. This wasn't happening was it? How could she die in her own home? She was supposed to go to the charity walk and complain the entire night to Naru. Maybe even drag Jadeite into.

A grin split Nephrite's face as he felt the knife pierce flesh. The girl had twisted the last minute and had not taken the full brunt of the hardened steel. He realized that he had missed her heart and instead ended up running the blade into her right lung. "I missed your heart but no worries. I'll stay with you while you drown in your own blood." Nephrite said as he pushed the knife further into her chest and started to twist causing Usagi to scream in pain.

"Huuu." The impact from the blow of Nehprite's body hitting her caused the wind to be knocked out of her lungs. Pain blossomed in her chest and her eyes dilated as the adrenaline hit her system. She let out a shuddering breath that came out as a wet gurgle as blood started to pool in her right lung. She felt tears start to form at the edge of her eyes. Was this really how it was going to end? Killed in her room by a crazed man that was convinced she was the devil incarnate. "Why?" She managed to gurgle out. Flecks of blood collected around the edges of her lips giving them an almost ruby sheen.

"Why? I had hoped to kill you in one blow. Make it nice and painless for you but maybe this way is better. You're going to suffer through the pain you put me through." With a smirk he twisted the knife a little and watched her scream. He forced her onto her tippy toes by moving the knife a little further upwards.

"Jadeite…" She managed to breathe out in a gasp of pain. It was some hope on her part that the man would show up. If she wasn't in so much pain she may have found it funny that the first person her mind went to was Jadeite.

"No, no, no." Nephrite said softly as he used the knife to direct her body towards the bed. Ever careful not to expose his skin to her body he forced her body onto the bed and slowly directed her to lay down by digging the knife deeper into her body until she complied. "You're all alone with me. Now I am going to watch you die." He laughed quietly. "Isn't it funny though? All that power and yet here you lie dying in your own blood. I thought you'd be the end of me."

Usagi coughed a little once more spitting out flecks of blood as she tried to get a good breath in. Instead all that she felt was a strange sucking. She could barely get air into her lungs. Now that she had been forced onto the bed in a supine position it made it even hard to breathe. The blood was filling her lungs even faster. She could only stare at the man that was to kill her. It was with those sudden words "power" that she realized that maybe, just maybe, she could transform. She slowly moved her hand up towards the charm that rested in between her breasts. If she could reach it, it may be enough to save her.  
Nephrite's eyes caught a slight movement. At first it appeared she was just trying to wriggle around in a useless attempt to escape but upon further inspection he realized she was slowly working her way towards something. It was almost too late when he saw her attempt to withdraw a pendent from her blouse with a sword and moon design. Without even thinking he knocked it away.

Usagi took her chance and grabbed his hand for dear life hoping against hope that the crazed man would suffer a similar experience. She was not to be disappointed. The moment she touched his hand she felt a white glow envelope the both of them. Nephrite immediately attempted to pull away from her but she pulled back with all her might. It was only pure luck that she took him by surprise.

It was her turn to be surprised as the light suddenly formed around the knife in her body and slowly dissolved the knife into nothingness. The light slowly spread across her injury after the knife disappeared before sealing the injury. Moment by moment she found it easier to breathe as the light simultaneously repaired her body while driving Nephrite to claw at his head as it worked to complete the memories blocked by Beryl. If Usagi knew what she was about to unlock she would have let go right then and there. Instead she kept her hand on in an attempt to keep the connection flowing as she became strong enough to push him off of her and onto the ground.

It took less out of her than she was expecting to roll him over so he was face down on the floor. One would think getting stabbed and almost dying would perhaps wear one out but instead she felt even more energized than prior. From what she could see the man was truly out. Whatever she had done drained him completely. Not that she was complaining about the situation at all. "What the hell do I do with big, tall, and murderous?" Usagi muttered to herself.

After a moment of hesitation she pulled out her phone and attempted to call Jadeite but of course the jackass sent her right to voicemail. With a groan she attempted Minako. Unfortunately all she got was her voicemail. "Just great. I swear those two are so unreliable. It is a wonder that they've survived as long as they have if this is how great their communication is."

There was nothing for it unfortunately. She couldn't exactly call the police and inform them she was almost killed by a crazed mad man that believed in a kingdom on the Moon. And the murder weapon was miraculously removed from the scene with her own powers. Also officer please don't put him in a mental ward because he'll break out and come kill me again. A frown appeared on her face. So just what could she do with him? Without any other option then to go find Jadeite at the charity event she resorted to grabbing the nearest thing that could constitute rope. "Oh man this is pathetic no way this'll hold him." She muttered. "And just what the hell will I tell my parents….man…this sucks."

With a sigh of annoyance she nudged Nephrite with her foot. From the response he seemed well and truly out of the fight for the time being. She was impressed with how well she was taking almost dying again. The hell!? Was she actually getting used to almost dying? Hopefully that wasn't the case. Maybe she was just in shock. "Right well this'll have to do for now until I figure out what the hell to do with you, big guy." Usagi said with a slight sigh as she tied his arms behind his back with a discarded pair of sheer stockings she found on the ground.

She stood up to observe her handiwork before she pulled a frown. "No way is that gonna hold but oh well." With a slight shrug she grabbed her items for the charity event before heading out of her room. She'd have to of course grab some snacks on the way out. It was odd how well she was taking this but whatever she'd freak out later, followed by yelling at Jadeite and crying to Naru about how unfair life was. With one last worried look at the hog tied man, Usagi left her bedroom and closed the door in hopes that would somehow make it all better.

Nephrite gasped as he came to. He was alone in a black inky nothingness. Where was he? Nothing around him looked like the room that he had been in a moment ago. In fact there wasn't anything he could identify as belonging to the room he had occupied previously or the house he had been lurking about in. With a slight frown he pushed himself to his feet and started to feel around the darkness for a wall or anything. Maybe a light switch?

After a moment he came across a door knob. It felt cool in his hand. He gave it a twist after a moment of indecision and heard a creak as the knob turned. Clearly it had not been used in a long time. Something in the back of his mind told him not to go through. To turn away and run. Run away and never come back. To board the door up and hide it away. He felt a light sheen of sweat come to his face.

No…no he had to go through. The stars had prophesized that he would find his destiny. Perhaps it was just on the other side of this door. He clamped down the emotions swirling about his head and with a push he opened the door. "Hn…" Nephrite muttered to himself as he peered into the room on the other side. It was lit by soft lights from a chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

Without thinking of the previous concern he felt, Nephrite stepped into the room fully. It was an odd room. Circular in nature with a high domed roof completed the theme leading up to the chandelier at the center of the room. The floors were a soft marble swirled with flecks of blue. They almost looked like lightning strikes. A fire place was located on the other side of the room opposite of the door he walked through. The fire blazed along quite happily. Odd he thought to himself as the door knob had been quite cool. One would think with the ambient heat of the room from the fire place it would have seeped into the metal of the door knob.

The heels of his boots made a distinct clicking sound as he made his way across the room towards the fire place. He continued to observe the room as he approached the fire place. The walls he realized were full of moving pictures. Upon closer inspection he realized that they were his memories. Nephrite's eyes widened in surprise…memories that he realized were from prior to the fall of the Moon Kingdom. Pictures of him and Conquest dancing. Only she wasn't Conquest. She was Sailor Jupiter. There was further evidence that Beryl had been less than forthcoming. Memories were playing in some of the frames outlaid in gold of him only he was in a white uniform much like Jadeite's outfit. It was him and the other Shitennou…only they were with someone. Someone that he felt some kind of loyalty to that didn't really make sense as he had never seen this person prior to today even if he couldn’t make out the picture. The man was almost blurred out completely.

"Has it all been a lie?" He muttered to himself as he found his hand reaching up to touch the nearest memory of his previous life. Had he really been blinded all this time by Beryl's lies? Was this what the stars had been trying to tell him all along? Perhaps he was not nearly as in tune with the stars as he thought he was. If Jadeite was able to overcome the lies of Beryl so easily why hadn't he been able to? He was just about to continue his study of the most recent memory when the sound of a meow drew his attention. He jerked his head up to see a small cat sitting by the fire place where there had been no cat before. "What the?" The small cat was grey in color with bright electric blue eyes. A yellow lightning bolt started at the tip of his right ear and zig zagged down its back until it ended on its left thigh.

"I've been waiting for you to wake up Nephrite for such a long time. We have so much to talk about and so much to do." The androgynous voice broke the silence. The cat smiled as much as a cat could.

 

A/N: Thanks again to my wonderful Beta Fleury's Apprentice70 for making this story not suck. Reviews are appreciated. I'd like to know if anyone is interested in seeing more on the Tokyo Police Dept or if you just want to see them engaging in battle. I'm fine getting into what is happening with them as I can write it but if there isn't an interest or if people would just skip it there'd be no point. Also…sorry the Nephrite reunion missed this chapter. I was going to get to it but I figured this would be a good cliff hanger. I also wouldn't mind to hear how you people like the format of set up/battle chapters. I find it works for my writing style but I can try to add in some action in my set up chapters if need be. Other than that I'm going to try and take advantage of my beta being off for the summer but I'm actively job hunting so I can't promise full devotion annnnd of course real life as well.


	6. Storm King Strikes

A/N: So this should have been out way sooner…buuuut Mario Kart 8 came out…and so I ended up caving and bought a Nintendo Wii U…and Mario Kart came with a free game. Needless to say I’ve been on a Nintendo Bender during my free time. Between that and job hunting, well I’ve been busy. Being an adult is hard.   
By the by with the permission of Ginsan I will be including Jordan soon into the series. See if you can spot the reference to his appearance. For those of you that do not know check out Ginsan’s profile and read “A Knight’s work is never done” or check out Lynnwood’s “Silver Alliance” I can’t tell which has a “happier” ending for poor Jordan. I can only promise that I will do my best to keep Jordan to the author’s artistic image of him. So I am doubling down for inflation with two semi-sarcastic and grumpy male allies for Usagi. That and Artemis will soon be in what can only constitute as hell.   
Also this is unbetaed as my regular beta has been busier than expected this summer. I tried to do the best I could so excuse the grammatical errors. I attempted to break up the normal huge paragraph chunks I tend to write in. Anyway on with the show! And yes more answers than questions as per usual. 

The Storm King Strikes – 

“Hurry up…hurry up…hurry up!” Usagi half whined half muttered as she shifted her weight from foot to foot in impatience.   
The more rational side of her understood the school and city’s paranoia after what had happened at the carnival. Still having to wait in line while Police Officers searched everyone’s bags and scanned them for any type of weapon was still over the top considering she was fairly certain metal detectors didn’t set off when alien monster creatures were detected. With an annoyed huff she jumped a little to try and see over the heads of the people in front of her to see how long the line was. 

She let out a frustrated sigh when she saw it was still going to be a few minutes. She anxiously tapped her foot but that didn’t seem to alleviate her impatience. “Come on come on come on…this is taking forevvvvverrrrr.” She whined in annoyance once more at the inconvenience.

“Do you have no patience at all?” Jadeite interrupted her in a curt tone before he came to stand next to Usagi. A bored expression came to his face as he surveyed the security ahead of them. Did the Tokyo Police really not learn anything from their last encounter with the Dark Kingdom? 

“No.” Usagi responded without hesitation. She glanced over to Jadeite only to see he wasn’t even looking at her. Half the time he talked to her he was too busy staring at something else. Had the jerk really never heard of eye contact and how important it was in a conversation? 

“And yet somehow I’m not surprised.” Jadeite responded in a mocking tone as the two slowly shuffled up the queue to the security checkpoint. 

Usagi huffed in annoyance at the asshole’s inability to show any kind of concern or even try to humor her once in a while. Speaking of concern…she wondered if he’d even care that his friend attempted to kill her tonight. She took a quick glance around to confirm that no one was paying them any type of attention before she tugged down on his arm hard enough to bring him down to her level. It wasn’t that Jadeite was an overly tall man but she was annoyingly short compared to most people at just under five foot one. “Nephrite stopped by my house tonight.”

Jadeite’s eyes widened slightly but outwardly he showed no further signs of surprise. Instead he responded in a casual tone as if they were carrying on about the weather. “Oh?”

“Oh? Is that it? No further concern?” Usagi hissed in annoyance. 

“Well clearly you’re fine so the only question is what happened with Nephrite.” Jadeite responded sarcastically coupled with a roll of his eyes. 

“If you count getting run through with a knife as fine, then yes, I am just peachy.” Usagi responded tersely. This was ridiculous…she had just been run through and she was already over it for the most part minus the anger. “I’m almost getting used to being nearly killed. I’ve clearly been around you people way too much. I shouldn’t be used to almost dying at sixteen!” 

“Such dramatics, you sound just like Minako.” Jadeite quipped in a teasing tone. “Death isn’t that scary when you’ve died before…it’s really just like going to sleep. One moment you’re aware the next second nothing.”   
“I am not being dramatic and that is so creepy…” Usagi responded quietly as the two made their way closer to the front of the line. 

“Don’t knock it until you try it.” Jadeite chuckled mirthlessly. “I guess that just further proves that the Queen really did create you just to protect her daughter. Even Minako remembers dying. Although everything is still a little spotty even when we compare notes about what we both remember.” 

“You know I’m a real person with feelings right?” Usagi responded petulantly. “It doesn’t exactly do a girl good to hear that she was “created” by your dead royalty on the Moon to protect her equally dead but somehow reborn daughter.” She added air quotes around the created part.

“Oh come off it.” Jadeite rolled his eyes. Once again he was reminded how much he hated giving Usagi any new information. She always took it the wrong way. “You’re still a real person. She would have just created the powers and sent them to some future person. Think of it like winning the lottery. The powers could have selected anyone but they chose you.” He attempted to put an upbeat tone into his voice but it ended up sounding sarcastic…as usual. 

“Oh lucky me…” Usagi responded sarcastically. “I won a lottery I didn’t even enter…sounds like a big fat scam to me. Do I have to send someone my life savings first to claim the rest of my prize?  
“You’re such a brat…you think I wanted this responsibility?” Jadeite responded tersely. 

Usagi rolled her eyes before letting out a huff. “This whole thing sucks.” 

“Tell me about it. I have to work with two air headed blondes that cause more problems for me then I could shake a stick at.” Jadeite responded as the pair finally made it up to the front of the line. 

Usagi stuck her tongue out at Jadeite before quickly cutting him off before he could get to the screening officer first. She patiently waited for the officer to perform a quick pat down and pass her over with a metal detector.  
Once she was through the metal detector she waited impatiently for Jadeite to make it through. Subconsciously she tapped her fingers against her thigh. The moment she saw him get through she quickly grabbed him and started to pull him away from the crowd. 

“Not so rough you little gremlin.” Jadeite muttered in annoyance as he was yanked along. Really was it too much to ask that he just follow her? Really between Minako and Usagi he wasn’t sure which of the two of them won the game for most annoying person on the planet. 

“Oh shut up you insurmountable jackass.” Usagi responded in a biting tone before quickly dragging him down until they were eye level by grabbing his tie and pulling. “Now listen here. I managed to subdue Nephrite during the attack. Right now at this very moment he is tied up in my house.” 

“And you just left him there?” Jadeite queried in a skeptical tone as he drew back from Usagi’s death grip. To further drive his skepticism home he quirked an eyebrow at Usagi. It would be nice if Minako had been here to help translate the crazy but…surprise surprise…Minako was late. Of course Usagi fails to mention any of this earlier while they were in line but he supposed he could appreciate her discretion. He wouldn’t have put it past her to be screaming to all that would listen about a man from the Moon trying to kill her and how she had him tied up in her basement.

“Well what was I supposed to do?” Usagi hissed quietly as she warily glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention. Luckily the track was filling in and people were too busy greeting friends and family to pay attention to them. The inner circle of the track was filling up with students and tents. A small metal stage was currently being constructed on the far end. On the outer edges of the track the vendors supporting the event were setting up tables or small food trucks.

She crossed her arms in a huff as she continued on in a snide tone. “I wouldn’t have had to do anything if you answered your damn phone.” 

“Forgive me for thinking you could take care of yourself for a few hours.” Jadeite responded with a roll of his eyes.

“Clearly I greatly underestimated your ability to find trouble for yourself.” It appeared he’d be making a late night trip to Usagi’s house to retrieve Nephrite. Tying him up wouldn’t hold the bear of a man for long. In fact he was probably already gone. What a waste of a chance to turn him back to their side. Sure there was a possibility she had succeeded but she had probably just botched it up. Jadeite blew air out in a sigh of annoyance. Really it seemed these days that every interaction with this girl ended with him being annoyed in one way or another. 

“I’ll retrieve Nephrite from your room while you wait here for Minako. Fill her in once she gets here. I’ll call once I get to your house and confirm if the big lug is even still there.” With that decision made the blonde haired Shitennou started to walk off towards the edge of the track. 

“Oh no you don’t!” Usagi responded with a growl before she grabbed Jadeite’s arm and while she couldn’t exactly stop him she made sure to act like an anchor by digging her heels into the track.   
“There is no way you are going unescorted into my bedroom! I already got one man in there alone!”

Jadeite’s eyebrow ticked slightly as he suddenly felt all forward motion halt. A turn of his head confirmed that Usagi was anchoring herself into the ground. He almost couldn’t believe what he was hearing.  
An exasperated look accompanied the annoyed tone already seeping into his voice. “You’re seriously going to put us all at risk and possibly lose Nephrite because you don’t want me going into your room? Nephrite’s already hog tied in your room alone, what does it matter?” 

“I don’t care! You aren’t leaving me and snooping around my room unattended.” Usagi answered petulantly with a slight whine entering her voice.

It wasn’t fair…and also Jadeite would see what a mess her room was and he’d make fun of her. There was no way the jerk would leave it alone. If what he said about Minako was anything to go by the man must have part of his brain devoted entirely to remembering embarrassing details. “If you’re going, I’m coming with you.”

“Do you really think I’m going to take the time to snoop around your room while I have more important matters to deal with, like oh say Nephrite trying to murder you and you hopefully not doing more harm than good?” Jadeite responded in a cutting tone. Once again the urge to roll his eyes reared its ugly head.

Truth be told he really would prefer to leave her here. Her powers were untested and he wasn’t sure what she had actually done to Nephrite. Sure he could be on their side now or she could have really really messed up. He was pulled out of his musing by the sound of giggling girls. 

“Oh Jadeite! I should have known you’d be here! You’re such a great guy supporting the charity event I helped put together!” A strawberry blonde girl spoke up as she stepped around Usagi while throwing the girl currently hanging off her Jadeite’s arm a dirty look. She spotted Jadeite’s other arm and looped her arm into his before starting off again at a mile a minute.

“Why don’t you join our team? I know the rest of the girls would love to spend the night with you!” The girl casually drew herself a little closer to the popular and quite handsome boy. All while trying to draw his attention away from the little annoying sophomore that clearly did not understand her place in the social order of the school.

Usagi adopted a sneer across her face in response to the dirty face she received from the girl that had suddenly appeared. There was no way she was going to let such an obvious snub by the girl go unanswered. Didn’t this girl understand that they were a little busy here? And as far as she was concerned this girl could just butt right out.

“Well such a shame that he already has a team for this event…and in fact we were discussing our rotation for the night before you so rudely interrupted.” Usagi huffed in annoyance.   
“Is that so? Jadeite?” The strawberry blonde pouted slightly before shyly batting her eyes as she looked up at Jadeite innocently.

“But you must have a few minutes to spare to come over to our tent…I mean I’m sure the little girl here can handle everything without you for a few minutes.” She threw a calculating look at Usagi before she addressed the younger girl that seemed to be trying to keep the attention of Jadeite. As if the girl had anything to offer Jadeite that he couldn’t get elsewhere. 

“You can handle things all by yourself right…so shoo shoo little girl. I promise I’ll bring him back.” 

Jadeite just threw Usagi a look as if to say “what can I do?” as he was led away by Sakura. Unfortunately he needed to keep up appearances or else it’d make it all the harder to befriend the students of the school. If he failed and became a social outcast…well it’d make his mission all the harder. As it stood he could easily move through the social groups. It allowed him to get to know more and more people. Hopefully one of them would be the missing King…and if he found Minako’s Princess…well that wouldn’t be bad either. 

A tittering laugh from Sakura brought him back to the present. He’d have to worry about handling Nephrite once he could get away…shit.

“And then Kobuto said he’d walk twice the distance we walked!” 

“You don’t say…well you know how Kobuto is.” Jadeite adopted an easy smile as he walked away with Sakura firmly attached to his arm. 

Usagi felt her blood start to boil in anger and embarrassment over how that girl just dismissed her. And Jadeite hadn’t even lifted a proverbial finger to stop the girl either. Even now he was just walking away with the girl and laughing with her. It really bothered her on such a visceral level and she couldn’t even work on calming herself down.

All she wanted to do was to take that girl by her hair and smash her head into the god damn guardrail! That’d show her for stealing Jadeite! Wait…since when did she give a crap who that arrogant asshole spent his time. A brief touch upon her shoulder interrupted her internal thoughts and she almost jumped in surprise. 

“Don’t worry about it too much sweetie.” Ikuko softly spoke with an understanding smile dancing across her lips. 

“As much as I like Jadeite if it is meant to be, it will be. If he can’t see how great you are then it’s his loss.” Usagi’s mother offered up her sage advice of the day.

“Mother!” Usagi hissed as quietly as she could to avoid drawing any attention to the fact her mother was currently giving her dating advice about the jack ass. Her mother might see him as a kind kid but she knew it was a bullshit front he put up for his mission. 

“I don’t care about him. He can do whatever he wants and go talk to whoever he wants. If he wants to hang out with vapid brain dead girls, well that’s his business.” She finished in a huff indicating that she was finished with the conversation. 

“Of course he can dear.” Ikuko responded in a patronizing tone. Perhaps it was time to lay off and let Usagi pretend she wasn’t as easy to read as an open book. 

“I just wanted to let you know that we just got back from dinner…and I brought you a little something to make up for going out without calling you.” Laughter almost left her lips at the way her daughter perked up at the mention of a possible treat from The Great Burger(1) which happened to be Usagi’s favorite restraint. 

“Please tell me you brought me a raspberry shake!” Usagi’s mouth started to water at the very thought. All concerns about Jadeite and that little trollup that had interrupted their major meeting…not to mention dealing with Nephrite left her mind. It shouldn’t be a surprise with Usagi’s love of food that she was bouncing from foot to foot in the middle of the track in impatience oblivious to the stares she was getting from the small groups of teens and young adults walking by. 

“Would I get you anything but?” Ikuko laughed before she offered the bag that had been at her side a moment ago.

“I hope you understand the trouble I went through to get this to you. You know your father around sweets…” Ikuko trailed off as Usagi grabbed the bag from her hands and had the packaging ripped off a moment later. With a sigh she glanced down at the tattered remains of the bag handles that Usagi had broken off in her hurry to get the shake she had brought her. 

“Like father like daughter…why couldn’t she be more like I was at her age?” Ikuko sighed. Perhaps it was too much to hope that her daughter would both start putting effort into her school work and start acting like a proper young lady in the same year. 

"Thanks for the shake!” Usagi didn’t even hear her mother’s comment as her attention was completely focused on the delicious raspberry shake in her hand. The attention was short lived though. Not even a sip in the sudden sound of screams rent the air. 

The peaceful atmosphere was shattered in an instant. People started pushing away from the other end of the track field. The sudden press of panicked people almost sent Usagi to the ground as she was jostled around. Luckily her mother managed to catch her but not her shake. 

“My shake!” Usagi cried out in genuine anger as her mother forcibly dragged her out from the press of the crowd and towards the stands. She couldn’t see Jadeite in the crowd and Minako hadn’t arrived yet as far as she knew. Whatever was causing the panic though couldn’t be good.

“Usagi are you…” Ikuko trailed off before her eyes widened when she saw what was causing the panic. There had been news reports and even some tabloids claiming that there were creatures invading Japan. Of course she had dismissed them but that didn’t make what she saw any less real.

At the very edges of the stampede of people were things that looked like shambling pieces of ice resembling knights. While the ice creatures looked like rejected movie props, the metal swords and shields looked real enough. 

Ikuko started to pull her daughter away from the stands. She would have to count on her husband to protect their son. She could already see the stands emptying out. She pulled upon her daughter to get her out of the way of the incoming wave of people. “Come on Usagi, we’ve got to run!” 

Usagi looked on in terror for a moment as one of the creatures viciously rent a child that had fallen in two. The sword pulsed with a kaleidoscope of colors before it returned to a tarnished silver color. 

Somehow she innately knew that the creature had just drained the child of his life energy and left the husk to die. Two twin pinpricks leapt to the corners of her eyes. The last encounter she had, she almost died but none of the victims had gotten hurt. 

It was naïve of her to think that these people that had tried to kill her wouldn’t dare to kill innocents but in a small part of her mind she thought that they were playing by some kind of imaginary rules. Imaginary rules of engagement only happened in story books though and she wasn’t living in a fantasy. 

Seeing creatures turn into dust and people injured was one thing. Everyone from the last attack had recovered. To some extent her mind had childishly thought that, that was how it would always be. Nephrite may have tried to kill her personally but his creatures had never attacked innocents. She realized that she had the power to stop this. If she were to run away it would allow innocents to die. By not taking a stand she would be no better than the monsters cutting people down. It was time to get serious…people were dying and she wanted to run. She wanted to run when she could stop it all with two words. 

“I have to help!” Usagi pulled away from her mother. The last look she saw on her mother’s face was a look of confusion and fear. Fear for her daughter. The guilt almost stopped her right there but she knew only she and Jadeite would have a chance at stopping whatever these things were. With a single minded determination she started to push her way back towards the stands and towards the incoming danger. Just as she ducked under the stands she saw a tall woman bash one of the creatures in the side of the head with what looked to be a shotgun. 

Haruka couldn’t believe it. She had unloaded every single round her assault shotgun had in it and it hadn’t done a damn bit of difference. All it resulted in was some chipped ice. To make it all the worse she was still recouping from her last run in with one of these freak jobs. This was supposed to be light duty but here she was using her shotgun like a baseball bat. With a roar she swung the shotgun into the things head with all her might. Of course all she accomplished was exasperating the injuries.

The reverberations went right down the length of the barrel and into her body causing her to shudder in pain. A quick glance down to her thigh confirmed that she had just reopened her wound judging by the red rising to the top of the white bandage wrapping her still recovering wound. 

It felt like the carnival all over again. Nothing was even putting a dent in these things. Anything they got a hold of was quickly torn to shreds by their swords and conventional weapons weren’t working. The only thing in her favor was that they weren’t moving quickly. Haruka pushed through the pain with a grimace as she quickly jumped out of reach of the creature’s sword. She ended up rolling backwards and lost her shotgun somewhere in the process. If she was honest it didn’t really matter because the damn thing had done nothing for her. 

“Michiru, status report.” She belted out the moment she activated her com link with a quick touch to her ear. Without waiting for a response she was already in motion again. A quick survey around her and she confirmed that everyone was retreating including the officers on duty. Then again she had been the only one armed so it wasn’t a surprise that they had fallen back with the crowd. Due to her time as a track runner she quickly caught up to the crowd.

“Keep moving!” She encouraged the civilians. There was no use to tell them not to panic. Most of the crowd had witnessed the ineffectiveness of her shotgun. 

“Civilians have been cut off at the main exit.” Michiru reported with a hint of panic edging into her musical voice. She had been directing the officers in the field towards alternative exits but it didn’t stop the casualty count from climbing. The crowd was rushing away from where the creatures had originally appeared from the North side right into more of the creatures that had appeared by the exit. 

“I’ve radioed Kent and he is sending in reinforcements.” This wasn’t like last time. People were dying and there were no signs that anything would be there to stop them.

“Shit.” Haruka muttered to herself. She hated to admit it but she wouldn’t mind seeing Kent coming in on one of the unit’s Unimogs or Fuso Fighter that had been outfitted with the anti-vehicle weapon and light these things up. In the back of her mind she had doubts that even their heaviest artillery pieces would put a dent in these creatures. 

If the creatures were at the South entrance there was nothing more she could do for them. She’d have to leave it up to the officers still in the area to minimize losses. It was a cold way to look at it but after her previous encounter it was the only way to if she didn’t want to die a pointless death. All she could do was get as many people out as possible. 

“Michiru…find me an exit, I’m going to take as many as I can. Get in touch with the mobile command vehicle if it hasn’t been compromised and issue a retreat.” She hated herself for calling in a retreat but as the ranking officer on the field for the counter-terrorism unit she was technically in command during a terrorist attack. She heard a scream to her right and quickly spun around to see one of the giant hulking beasts bringing a sword down on a pair of teens that had been caught unaware. 

She was about to draw her side arm in an attempt to distract it when a large flame whip cut through the creatures arm at the elbow. The flame whip quickly disappeared leaving the creature to stare down at where its arm once was in confusion. 

“Not very smart for something Zoisite made…not much for creativity though is he big boy?” Jadeite carried on the one sided conversation with a hint of humor in his voice before he released his fire whip once more and skillfully removed the ice beast’s head from its body. Not that it would stop the hulking golem that Zoisite had created. So with a flourish he bisected it down the middle with his sword. The ice golem harmlessly fell to either side. The remaining legs and arm of the ice golem uselessly pulled around in a circle. 

Haruka just stared at the dissected ice creature in awe. What she couldn’t do with a high powered shotgun this kid had done with nothing more than a magical fire whip. While Kent had informed of her savior from the incident at the carnival she didn’t quite believe him. It was rare that Haruka was caught flatfooted but she was actually speechless. 

“I know…I know everyone imagines their knight in shining armor to wear actual armor.” Jadeite chuckled with a hint of mirth.

“But I find it to be so cliché. I mean lugging all that weight around when I can just use my superior sixth sense to get out of danger. I already saved you once…but if you ask nicely I’ll consider doing it again.” A cocky smirk graced Jadeite’s face. If there was one thing he loved it was pressing people’s buttons and if he read this girl right…well she had a lot of buttons. 

“I don’t need anyone to save me you pig headed idiot.” Haruka responded hotly before drawing her service pistol if nothing else than make her feel better. Sure she doubted that she could even touch him but it made her feel better. 

“Sure you don’t.” Jadeite snorted.

“Now if you put your little pop gun away and would kindly stop aiming at me.” Jadeite rolled his eyes before continuing on with an annoyed huff. He realized the police girl wasn’t making any move to put her gun away. The least she could have done was stop pointing it directly at him.

“Right, I’ll need you to work on getting the civilians to safety. If we’re lucky my back up will be here shortly.” With a mock salute he jumped away from the still semi stunned police officer and bounded towards the nearest ice golem. With a snap of his fingers he brought his fire whip back into existence. A precise snap of his whip he beheaded the ice golem and melted it down the rest of the way with a blast of fire. 

A roar was the only warning that Jadeite had. Reacting only on instinct he rolled away from the downed ice golem. In mid roll he dispelled the fire whip as to avoid burning himself. He felt the wind pass by the back of his head from another golem’s sword passing right by. The roll unfortunately turned into a tumble when he hit an uneven patch of ground and ended up splayed out on the ground. 

With a groan he managed to shake off the pain from his stupid mistake. Just as he was getting himself back up on his feet he suddenly was engulfed by a shadow. The ice golem was bearing down on him. Once more he found himself cursing the fact he had dispelled his whip and hadn’t bothered to summon his sword. 

“Crescent Beam!” Sailor Venus yelled as she appeared in mid jump above Jadeite. A ray of golden light grew at the tip of her finger before she let loose the golden beam. She watched with no small amount of satisfaction as the blast of concentrated energy blew chunks of ice out of the creature and sent it stumbling back. The moment she landed she gave a quick fist pump. 

“Oh yeah! And that is why you don’t mess with the ever beautiful Sailor V!” 

“Would you make up your mind? Is it Venus or Sailor V?” Jadeite muttered in annoyance. Anytime that Minako saved him was something to dread. The insolent girl would make it a point to hold it over Jadeite’s head for as long as she could. Of course it didn’t matter that he saved her time and time again. The one exception to the rule was good enough for her. 

“Oh don’t be such a party prover!” Minako admonished accompanied by a slight waggle of her finger. She ran a hand through her hair before blowing an exaggerated kiss.

“It isn’t every day you’re saved by a real super heroine.” 

“Oh lucky me.” Jadeite bit back with sarcasm laced in every word. 

“To be saved by a girl running around in a mini skirt has always been my dream.” Once again he debated the merits of joining the Dark Kingdom. Although it would make his life easier it wouldn’t make it any easier dealing with Minako or Usagi since he’d be fighting them anyway. He shook his head to dispel the thoughts before targeting the next golem. 

“Minako help me keep the remaining golems away from the Police girl. She will lead the people through the North exit if we can hold the golems off.” 

“You know a simple thank you would do.” Minako shot back with a brief flash of her tongue before she summoned her golden chain to hand.

“I’ll hold the right side if you keep the left side clear. Whoever destroys the most of Zoisite’s little toys buys the other dinner!” Without waiting for an answer she bounded away towards the next golem with her glowing golden chain at the ready.

Jadeite paid her little mind; instead he directed his attention to an incoming ice golem. 

“Zoisite really didn’t think this through, Lava Lines!” The fingertips on his right hand started to heat up to the point that they turned an orange and red hue. With a thunderous expression his suddenly drove his hand down into the ground, pointed towards the ice golem. Five red lines shot forth from his finger tips and thumb and went well past the incoming ice golem. With a roar he ripped his hand from the Earth and watched as five lines of lava and fire burst forth from the ground. The spray of fire and lava melted the golem in an instant.

This had been all too easy. Zoisite wouldn’t have bothered sending these useless golems out here without someone to direct them. So the question was…where was Zoisite? Now that he was clear of the lumbering beasts for the moment he took a quick survey of the surrounding area. The soccer goals were of course clear. This part of the stadium had been cleared out after the initial attack. Jadeite’s eye drifted to the remaining structure in the area, the scoreboard. 

Standing atop the scoreboard staring down at the chaos below was Zoisite. The crafty bastard stood at a meager five foot two. His long fiery golden hair tied in a loose ponytail at the base of his neck. He wore the traditional drab grey uniform that Beryl seemed to dress all of her toy soldiers in. Probably because she feared that any of them would show any kind of individuality if she put them in their original uniforms. 

With a haughty wave he yelled out to Zoisite. “Still on your knees for the Queen then you unimaginative prick! Seriously did she ask you to attack with the stupidest concept ever? You realize that ice is melted by fire right?”

Zoisite sneered in annoyance from his overview atop the scoreboard. With the stadium lights pointed at the track and the scoreboard off, he had hoped to observe the attack unmolested. Still it had taken long enough for the big oaf to realize that he was in the area. It wasn’t like he would let the golems lumber around unsupervised. He supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised that Jadeite had shown up. The idiot did seem to have a hero complex. Still he could put an end to all of this now. The energy he was gathering was astounding. While Nephrite seemed to want to turn the human race into a farm, he saw them for what they really were, prey.   
With gentle push, Zoisite gracefully pushed himself into the air while raising his outstretched hand to point at Jadeite. No need for formalities the noble fool had tried to turn him before. It was too bad that Jadeite had never realized that the problem was never the length of the contact but Zoisite’s own will. While he had no desire to work for Beryl he had never bought into Jadeite’s vision of peace. Why protect the weak? They were but little pawns to sacrifice in the struggle for power.

“Ice Crystal Explosion!” Without a hint of regret he let loose a torrent of ice shards that rained down upon the entire area. The ice shards shredded everything in their path apart. The Astroturf was quickly turned into hunks of black and green rubber. The few humans he caught in his sweep were turned to little more than bloody humanlike husks. Cut down without a chance.  
A moment later Zoisite touched down on the ground by the ruined Astroturf. Of course Jadeite had managed to avoid the attack not that it really mattered. There was no need to actually engage Jadeite…no the blonde fool would kill himself trying to protect the innocents. 

“Oh my…Jadeite I seem to have broken some of my toys.” Zoisite sneered with disdain before raising his arm towards another group of humans that were making their way out of his trap. Now he couldn’t have that. Shooting a superior smirk at Jadeite he started to gather energy in his outstretched hand that was aimed at the escaping civilians.

“Ice Crystal…Explosion!”

“No!” Jadeite yelled before he pushed himself into motion. He started to run towards the group. There was no real plan in his mind. Only that he had to stop Zoisite’s attack from killing the police girl and the people she was leading to safety. While in motion he realized just a moment too late that he had left himself exposed to Zoisite. 

By the time he realized his error it was too late. A stabbing pain suddenly bloomed into being in his right thigh. He had a moment where his leg hitched before it completely gave out. With a scream of pain he fell into a roll. The roll drove the spike of ice that Zoisite had hit him with further into the meat of his thigh with a sickening squelch. He forced his hand out towards Zoisite’s shards of ice flying towards the unexpected civilians.  
“Flame Wave!” He felt the fire light up on the edges of his sleeve from the back of his hand to his shoulder. The fire ate at the oxygen enriched air greedily. With a quick slash of his arm he released the flames which quickly turned into a billowing wave of fire that intercepted the ice shards. The sound of small pops floated across the stadium as the super-heated flames met the icy shards.

There was no time to admire his handiwork or confirm that he had nullified Zoisite’s entire attack. A high pitched whistling sound was the only warning he had. With a gasp of ragged air, Jadeite forced himself to move. He bit the inside of his lip to keep from screaming out in pain again.

With a quick roll he avoided the line of jagged ice spears that Zoisite had attempted to spear him with. All the exertion had left him breathing heavily. He managed to get his head up and fight through the pain. If he was going to survive this he couldn’t let his eyes stray. The icy bastard had no qualms about attacking while he was down. 

Never having moved from after his first attack, Zoisite withdrew his rapier from his side. The deadly blade caught the light of the surrounding stadium lights. The sun had set and the only light now came from them. It cast long shadows and it hid his ice golems rather well. The screams of death and fear were like music to his ears. A superior smirk rested across his thin face. 

“Well isn’t this a familiar sight.” 

“What something you’re used to? Then again serving that whore Queen, I’m sure you’re fairly adept at falling to your knees for the delusional psycho.” Jadeite bit back with a growl. 

He couldn’t move but that didn’t mean he couldn’t keep the bastard busy as long as possible. If he could keep his attention then he may be able to hold off until Minako returned…or Usagi came to rescue him. Briefly he debated which was worse. The thought disappeared as quickly as it had entered his mind. Without further concern for such trivial things he quickly built up the next attack by inhaling a massive amount of oxygen enriched air. His lungs automatically filtering out everything else to boost the explosive force of his dragon breathe attack. With a great exhale he spit a torrent of flames at Zoisite. 

Zoisite back flipped into the air and away from the flames. He realized almost too late that the flames were chasing him. Zoisite flung his hand out in front of him and let loose a blast of ice to put a stop to the flames. Unfortunately no matter how much energy he put into his icy blast the fire slowly crept up towards his arm. 

No point in continuing this stalemate. With a final burst of power he shot himself away from the torrent of fire and closer to Jadeite. While the flames were eating their way through the remainder of his icy blast he let loose another wave of icy spears at Jadeite. 

-

Usagi brought her sword around and cleaved another golem in twain. Her face was uncharacteristically formed in a tight frown. There had never been a time prior where people depended on her but she knew one slip up would mean someone’s life.

Spotting her next target that was closing in on some lost children. She raised her sword with dogged determination. For some reason her powers felt in sync. She had stopped fighting them and instead relied on her instincts. It seemed to be helping. 

“Lunar Rush!” 

With a burst of speed she disappeared before reappearing in front of the ice golem that was in mid swing. The large blade she relied upon didn’t let her down. There was a brief explosion of sparks before her blade cut right through the monster’s blade and body. A faint white line trailed behind her sword before the monster’s sword slid off its hilt. A moment later the upper part of the creature’s body started to slide off of its waist. With a quick finishing cut she finished the creature off with a quick bisecting cut. 

A frown crossed her face as she surveyed the area. The ice creatures just kept coming and every time she cut one down, two more appeared in their place. She’d have to find the source of the golems and stop them. As if to answer her unasked question a brief flare of fire lit up the darkening sky from the North side of the stadium. Of course Jadeite would run right into the problem. The jerk despite his objections had just as much of a habit of running into trouble as she did. 

The thoughts she had were interrupted by a whimper she heard behind her. A quick look back she found that she had an audience of younger children. In an attempt to seem friendlier she dropped the frown on her face and offered an encouraging smile. 

“Don’t worry kids I’ve dusted this beast. But I need you to find a police officer. I’ve seen a few that way!” She directed the children by pointing her blade where she had last seen a living police officer. Unfortunately she had come across more than a few dead officers in just the last few minutes. Unarmed they hadn’t stood a chance. 

“Now I want you to go find one and get out of here!”

“Thanks for saving us Sailor V!” One of the older children asked. The children were understandably a little wary that this armored girl was using her giant sword as a directional indicator. 

“Uh…not really see I’ve got a sword…” Usagi responded thoroughly confused by the question. How could anyone confuse the two of them? Was it really just the blonde hair? 

“Oh good…I thought you were just a lot uglier in person.” The boy muttered. 

“WHAT!” Usagi let loose a shrill screech. “I am not ugly!” 

“Sure whatever! Thanks for saving us!” The boy yelled before he ran after the rest of the good little children that had followed her directions without any back talk. 

“Damn little brat.” Usagi muttered insolently before another explosion of fire drew her attention back to the task at hand. With renewed vigor she bounded away towards the source of fireballs that kept lighting up the night sky. Well it looked like Jadeite was letting whoever he had found have it. 

Once she was in visual range she spotted the man that Jadeite was engaged with. She also saw that Jadeite was confined to one spot. A large icy spear run right through his thigh and blood oozing out the sides of the wound. If it had been anything larger it probably would have taken his leg clean off. Well she’d just have to see about putting the bastard down. She got herself ready for the sudden teleportation. 

“Lunar Eclipse!” 

In a flash the entire stadium went dark. Mass panic set in for that brief instance before the lights above flickered on above. When the stadium lights finally came back on Usagi stood in front of Zoisite. Her large broadsword had pierced the small man right through the middle. The man’s face contorted from a look of surprise to a superior smirk. Not a moment later Zoisite started to glow causing Usagi to look towards Jadeite in confusion. This wasn’t something she had ever encountered before. 

“Get the hell out of there!” Jadeite yelled. 

By the time Usagi started to put herself in motion it was too late. The glow around Zoisite built up until it was blinding before suddenly she was forcibly blown into the air. Zoisite exploded into icy shrapnel. If not for the armor that she wore and the placement of her broadsword the shrapnel would have shredded her apart. She went rolling across the ground until she landed near Jadeite. 

Her head was swimming and her vision was blurred. In fact nothing was really looking right. The armor and broadsword may have protected her body from the worst of it but it didn’t stop all of the shrapnel from getting through. She felt someone lifting her body up into a sitting position. Probably Jadeite…she hoped. All she could see in front of her was a bright light and a hand floating in front of her face. It looked weird though…like it was passing in front of her in slow motion. 

Jadeite cursed his luck. It appeared that Usagi was out of the fight. Damn fool girl rushed into the fight without even consulting him. Nephrite may be a right bastard but the Shitennou of the West had some fairly upstanding morals when it came to fighting…well most of the time. If he truly attempted to kill Usagi in her room then maybe those were slipping. 

Zoisite on the other hand was a whole different story. If there was a way to win he’d take it. Just to make everything even worse he couldn’t see anything. The explosion from Zoisite’s ice clone left the entire area hazy from the smoke let out by the ice that had vaporized. 

“Well Jadeite…it appears you’re to die down on your knees. How appropriate…just like the dog you are.” Zoisite’s voice cut in through the haze from the explosion.   
Jadeite glanced around trying to determine where the voice was coming from. They were the open and exposed. A frown rested across Jadeite’s face. The steady throbbing from Zoisite’s strike from earlier reminded him of their tactical disadvantage. 

With his immobility and Usagi more or less a dead weight it was just a matter of time before Zoisite managed to eliminate them. He wasn’t counting on Minako being able to pull a rescue out either. He had instructed her to hold the right side and she probably had her hands full keeping the civilians safe. 

Once again the only warning that Jadeite had was a high pitched whistling sound. Without hesitating, Jadeite slammed the palm of his free hand down that wasn’t holding Usagi up. 

“Fire Wall!” Jadeite roared while pumping as much power through his hand as possible into the ground. Not much fuel in the tank after this little maneuver. He watched with some small amount of satisfaction as a wall of fire encircled the two of them before rising up off the ground. Not a moment too soon either. The sizzling sounds of vaporized ice turning to steam came from behind him. The fire had the added benefit of burning off the smoke. He finally spotted Zoisite. 

“You must be quite desperate to burn off that much energy in one move Jadeite.” Zoisite called out in a mocking tone loud enough to be heard over the roar and crackle of the fire that Jadeite had created. 

“Come on out now, I can feel your energy is depleted. Your other little helper is occupied with my ice golems and your little whore is out for the count. Now why not stop fighting. The she bitch from above wants you back into the fold. It’d be so much easier if you stop struggling.” He lectured with faux concern laced in his voice. 

Zoisite waited for a moment but he quickly became impatient. 

“Well fine then, if you won’t come out. I guess I’ll have to make you!” Without bothering to continue the pointless conversation, Zoisite turned his attention to a group of pitiful humans that were attempting to escape. Time to put Jadeite’s morals to the test and see if he would sacrifice himself for the humans he was about to shred to nothing but energy. 

“Let’s test your mettle. Ice Crystal!” Zoisite halted mid attack. The barrier had dropped and Jadeite had launched another dragon’s breathe attack at his back. 

This time though Zoisite didn’t even bother dodging. There was no point based on the buildup of power he felt. The attack was weak which mean that Jadeite was weaker than he had first thought. With a quick swipe of his arm he diverted the blast of flames with an ice covered arm. Even as the ice quickly vaporized with hisses and pops, the ice quickly started to gain ground. Moments later the flames dried up as quickly as they came. It left behind a panting Jadeite behind.

“Oh my Jadeite…it appears you’re all out. No more fuel for the fire, excuse my pun.” Zoisite laughed aloud before he drew his rapier and pointed it towards the unmoving opponents. Neither the girl in armor he didn’t recognize or Jadeite could do anything but stare at him. The girl was still recovering from his explosive clone technique and Jadeite was all out of juice. It was a miracle that the man held his transformation.   
“Now I’d love to take you back to the she bitch but I guess I’ll have to tell her that I was just too rough and broke my toy. Now to finish you!” 

Jadeite was left gasping in large breathes of fresh air after the latest use of his dragon’s breathe technique. It was his last burst of energy. He could feel the sweat rolling down the back of his uniform. Even holding his transformation right now was taxing. If he lost his concentration for a moment he’d revert back and lose what advantage he had left. He chanced a glance down to see if Usagi had come around yet but she was still having a hard time keeping her eyes open. 

The only chance he had left was Minako but like Zoisite said…she was too far away. With nothing left but a little bit of energy left he raised his hand and readied his remaining power to deflect whatever Zoisite threw at him.   
“Fang of Lightning!” A thundering voice rang out across the stadium cutting through the general din of noise. 

A moment later a large fork of lightning twisted back and forth through the air. The attack cut off Zoisite’s attack and Jadeite’s last minute defense by cutting through both. A moment later a rumble of thunder followed the lightning causing silence to reign. 

“Brothers cease your fighting. The war between you is needless violence.” Nephrite’s calm voice rang out as the large bear of a man appeared seemingly out of nowhere between the two. No longer did he wear the colors of Beryl. 

Nephrite’s uniform was now a closer match to Jadeite’s uniform. A base color of white with black boots to complete the basics and finally a thin green line ran along the edges of his lapel and along the wrists. He was an imposing sight and he knew it. In fact he didn’t even bother to stand in a fighting position. Both of his arms were crossed and he casually glanced between the two. Silently he assessed both Jadeite and Zoisite. 

“Well looks like we finally have a fighting chance.” Jadeite said with a sigh of relief. He didn’t have the energy to do anything else but with Nephrite here and fully powered he could take a second to rest. 

“So you’ve turned from helping the she bitch to go playing hide and seek with the Moon’s Princess?” Zoisite taunted sarcastically. Truthfully he didn’t care if the giant of a man turned or not. It was more that he was pissed that his execution had been interrupted. So close to killing the meddlesome blonde haired idiot and now he’d have to deal with both of them if he retreated now without finishing the job. 

“Don’t be a fool Zoisite…I fight for Earth.” Nephrite declared with a glare leveled at the man. 

“The Moon Kingdom created the seeds for the Dark Kingdom to flourish. They caused the destruction of Earth. I’ve seen the truth and the Moon Kingdom’s supposed concern.” He finished harshly practically spitting the name of the Silver Alliance’s ruling planet.

“What?” Jadeite managed to choke out. The Moon Kingdom an enemy? It was the Dark Kingdom that had truly destroyed the Silver Alliance and the Earth Kingdom. Sure from what he could remember the Lunar people hadn’t lifted a finger at first but in the end they had all banded together. It had all been for naught but how could Nephrite regard the Moon Kingdom and Dark Kingdom as the same threat level. 

“The Moon Kingdom must pay for their sins. While the Dark Kingdom must be eliminated for they are nothing but a blight upon this land, I shall make sure that the Moon Kingdom shall never rise again.” Nephrite clasped his left hand together into a fist. 

The future had been shown to him. Three possible paths had been given. If the Moon Kingdom managed to win they would rise again taking over Earth and making it their own. If the Dark Kingdom won…then all of Earth would be drained of life. Those left alive would be turned into twisted caricatures of themselves. The final possibility though...if he could find the King. They could bring Earth back to the power it once was. They would reawaken the other planets but this time they would be the center of the Galaxy. 

“Sounds like you took one too many hits to the head dear Nephy.” Zoisite chortled. Was he really serious? What the hell had happened to the big lug in the time he was down here? Well Beryl had been quite clear with her orders not that he really needed any motivation to eliminate the crazy bastard. 

“The Moon isn’t our enemy Nephrite, you must listen to reason. Join us and we can put an end to the Dark Kingdom.” Jadeite attempted to reason with his friend and brother in arms. He could only wonder what the hell Usagi had done to muck this up. Something told him that Nephrite hadn’t come to this conclusion on his own. 

“Reason?” Nephrite responded with a slight quirk of his eyebrow. “Explain to me why we became science experiments for the Queen’s whims? Sealed away when it didn’t go quite like she expected?” Nephrite shook his head at Jadeite’s look of confusion. “You must believe me brother. The Moon is just as guilty as the Dark Kingdom. The Queen locked something away in me but…” He briefly nodded to Usagi.

“She unlocked it…I don’t know how but she broke the seal.” 

Jadeite couldn’t even unravel what the Western Shitennou was getting at. Even after he was released from the Dark Kingdom’s control he still managed to speak in riddles. It pissed him off but he wasn’t exactly in a good position to pick a fight with him. 

Nephrite casually moved his head to the side to avoid being beheaded by an icy spear that Zoisite had attempted to launch right through his skull. He glanced over at Zoisite momentarily before glancing down at Jadeite once more.

“I can see you still don’t understand. All will be made clear once our King is found. For now I must protect our kingdom from all foreign invaders. As a reward for helping me see the truth, I shall kill the one in your protection after I deal with Zoisite.” 

“Now, Fang of Lightning!” Nephrite commanded, a large bolt of lightning came down from the sky. Just as quick as it bore down upon him, Nephrite raised his hand into the air. The bolt of lightning struck him and for a moment he became surrounded in sparking electricity. Once the lightning ended he focused the energy into his hand before he redirected it towards Zoisite. With a deafening crack the bolt of lightning wove its way towards the grey uniformed Shitennou. The only thing that saved Zoisite was a quick use of his Rapier to ground himself. 

Zoisite smirked slightly as he felt the pulse of electricity rush through his body and into the ground. In a graceful movement he came down from the one handed, hand stand he had performed with the rapier firmly in the ground to divert the lightning.

“Have you forgotten why I was made the third Shitennou of the she bitch’s army, Nephrite?” With a flash his rapier was pulled from the ground and let his power flow into the weapon. He wasn’t surprised when Nephrite formed his halberd out of lightning. A thunderous sound from the North gate briefly distracted the two warring Shitennou. It appeared that the humans had brought their little toys in an attempt to stop his golems. No matter he’d finish them once he put Nephrite into the ground. 

-

“Keep their attention off the civilians!” Kent commanded from the Unimog’s open turret. The distress call from Michiru had been received and the counter terrorism unit was ready this time. Heavy weaponry had been quickly readied and the few Unimogs they had, had been scrambled. They had arrived right as Haruka had made it to the North gate with civilians in tow. Of course the troublesome girl had brought trouble knocking on their door. They had run right through the large metal gate that had been closed off for the event and set up position. The three Unimogs had been stationed in a semi-circle around the open gate. 

Not that it really mattered. The giant lumbering beings of ice didn’t seem all that bothered by the .50 caliber rounds that he and his men were pumping into them. Even the Unimog outfitted with the rocket propelled grenade launcher didn’t seem to do much more than blow small chunks of ice into the air. He hated to say it but the only thing stopping them from being overrun was a girl in a super small mini skirt that was one step away from public indecency. The blonde haired ditz…and he only called her that because she almost took out one of their vehicles with a stray lash of her whip, seemed to be doing a better job than their combined strength.   
With a slight frown the tall man swung the turret around and depressed the trigger. The entire vehicle shook as the 50 caliber gun belched out a volley of lead into one of the incoming golems that was attempting to circle around the blonde haired girl. Although it didn’t do much more than chip away at the ice and pinged off the metal sword it held. It was enough to draw the being’s attention. 

He let loose another valley of concentrated fire as the ice golem started to charge his vehicle. Nothing was slowing this thing down. In fact it was coming on faster. A moment too late he realized what his planned to do. Without hesitating for a moment he dropped down from the turret and into the armored enclosure of the Unimog. 

With a crash the giant golem crashed into the armored truck and Kent realized the danger he was in. The armor started to bend inwards as the giant being started to smash its fists against the side of the truck.   
A glance to the driver’s compartment confirmed he was already too late. The golem had smashed the cab of the truck in and killed the driver. A glance to the turret and he confirmed that the monster had crushed his secondary means of escape. The sound of fire outside the vehicle confirmed that the other men in his unit were trying to draw the creature away.

A scream rent the air followed by an ungodly crunch that made it through the walls of the Unimog. With a grunt he started to work his way back towards the rear doors that as of now were the only exit. The sound of fighting started up again as he finally made his way to the rear doors. 

He was just about to reach the rear door when he was jarred by another heavy impact. The armor started to sag inwards before the vehicle started to sag to the side. The suspension had more than it could take and was giving. The entire vehicle was being squeezed like a used soda can and if he didn’t get out now he’d risk being trapped inside.

Just as he got to the rear doors they were ripped open and he was grabbed by a pair of strong arms. He was drug out of the smashed vehicle just as the metal gave a high pitched whining sound as it gave in completely to the monster’s strength. 

“Come on Kent. Our weapons are useless against these things.” Haruka growled before hefting the disoriented commander away from the wrecked Unimog. She couldn’t believe the golem had smashed through the heavily armored vehicle like that. It hadn’t been a surprise that the golems had torn apart the Fusofighter that had been their mobile command center but the Unimog was supposed to be able to handle a round from a tank.

\- 

Minako cringed slightly at the sound of someone screaming. She didn’t want to turn around. The Dark Kingdom had never had such a disregard for human life before. Of course the difference was Zoisite. When they first fought him in France he had almost killed people there. After Jadeite had almost converted him to their side it was Nephrite that had taken his place. She wondered if turning Zoisite was even worth it or if he was really even under Beryl’s control. She had been so sure that Jadeite’s purification had done the job. That was what scared her the most. If Zoisite stayed with Beryl not due to brainwashing but of his own free will. 

She had to get her head back in the game. No time to be day dreaming. With a swish of her hand she brought her whip back to life. The chain of hearts she wielded started to glow gold once more with power. With a strong push off the ground she sailed through the air towards the next ice golem. This one was bashing in one of the police vehicles. From the blood dripping down the outside of the crushed cab she knew it was too late to save the crew but she could stop it from injuring anyone else. 

“Venus! Love me chain!” She cried out as she brought the glowing chain down through the center of the giant beast. With a tug she pulled the energy chain back to her hands. The police didn’t seem to understand that they were outgunned. Even their RPG launcher was useless not that she could say she was surprised. 

With a quick jump she landed on the top of the destroyed police vehicle to survey the area. While she didn’t see any more golems she did see Nephrite and Zoisite battling it out towards the South-West. Nearby Jadeite and Usagi were down and out for the count it appeared. Though Usagi seemed to be starting to move around a little, good, she doubted Jadeite would be much use from the look of it. 

You’re safe for now everyone! Continue escorting the civilians out of the area. I’ll handle it from here!” 

“Did she just order us around?” Haruka growled out in annoyance. She couldn’t believe that little blonde twit just removed that giant golem without even a little bit of effort. It had taken all they had just to put a dent in one of those things and she had axed it through without an issue. This was the same girl that almost died at the carnival and here she was saving the entire police force. 

Kent grunted before surveying the situation. The Unimog he had been in was utterly decimated. The remaining officers that were part of the counter-terrorism unit ranged from terrified to enraged…mostly terrified since he was fairly certain Haruka only operated on angry and angrier for her emotional settings. They looked to him to lead them. If he broke his remaining forces would break. He couldn’t allow them to flee. Not only would it sentence any remaining civilians to death but it would break the morale of the unit. 

Subconsciously he lit a cigarette if nothing else to calm his frayed nerves. After a quick drag he spoke up so his entire unit could hear him. 

“What are you all standing around for? Haruka I want you to gather a squad and start looking for survivors. Remaining forces we are going to hold this line. If you spot anything that isn’t human coming towards us I want you to light it up with everything we got.” He didn’t wait for the confirmations to his order. Walking back towards one of the remaining Unimogs he clicked over to the frequency that he knew Michiru was on. 

“Michiru report in.” He said in a crisp commanding tone. 

Michiru had been directing officers on where to go. The ice golems were mostly cleared out from the Northern part of the field but the giant beasts were still advancing from the South. Luckily they were slow. The element of surprise was what had killed so many people initially. Still the people that had decided to shelter were now in danger. 

The golems were methodically moving down the stadium. Anyone in their way was quickly drug out and killed. She winced again at the sight but there was nothing she could do. The bullets she had let loose on these things did nothing except chip ice off them. 

When Kent radioed her she was not surprised to hear his immediate demand. While she had paid some attention to the battle going on at the Northern gate she knew there was little she could do for them. The people towards the Southern gate had been her priority. She clicked the mic before speaking. Her normally musical voice slightly strained from the stress. 

“The ice creatures are advancing from the South. They are killing any survivors they encounter. There is a fight in the South-West. It looks like the people from the carnival and two new players.”

“Understood, Haruka is leading a team to try and recover any survivors. Direct any remaining officers towards the North. I have transports coming in to get them out of the area. We need to contain this though, if those creatures get out into the city we will have a larger issue at hand.” Kent instructed on the radio. He had been hoping that the blonde mini-skirt girl had taken out the last of them but it looked like it was up to them to hold the line. It looked like he’d have to see if he could convince the Self Defense Force to lend him some tanks if this wasn’t resolved shortly. 

Zoisite jumped back taking assessment of the last attack. The pain in his shoulder confirmed that the damn bastard had dislocated his arm at best or at worst broken it. A grimace crossed his face. It seemed that it was time for a tactical reassessment of the situation. Or in this case it was time to run. He had gotten enough energy from the attack for the she bitch’s purposes so there was no need to put himself in further danger.

A quick jump back saved him from getting hit from another bolt of lightning. With a wave of his rapier he created a distraction attack that should give him enough time to get away.

“Ice Dragon!” He roared before letting loose the pent up power. From the tip of the rapier a dragon’s head appeared. The beast quickly grew in size as it sped towards Nephrite. With a roar the dragon let loose a blast of ice towards the Lightning Shitennou. 

“I hate to leave you…but if Nephrite is willing to kill you there is no reason for me to stick around.” With a final mocking salute, Zoisite disappeared in a column of black energy. A moment later the ice golems disappeared as well leaving behind confused but relieved civilians. 

Nephrite frowned as he watched Zoisite disappear. Perhaps he had been too hasty in his attack. In his haste he had not consulted the stars on the outcomes of this encounter. It would have been too easy to wipe out the allies of the Moon and convert Zoisite to his side. Clearly it would be a longer process than he had hoped. Nephrite glanced down at the ice dragon that Zoisite had summoned. Not that it mattered anymore with his halberd’s blade run through the icy casing that served as its skull. With a final jolt of lightning through his halberd the dragon shattered into pieces. 

Once again his attention shifted back to Jadeite, the armored girl and a new girl that had appeared. If he remembered correctly it was the Princess of Venus. While three on one may be a concern in normal circumstances, he was fresh and bursting with energy. The three in front of him were worn out. Two barely holding onto their transformations and the Princess of Venus wasn’t that far behind. 

“Do you really believe you can stand against me?” He queried with a slight raise of his eyebrow. 

“Of course I do!” Minako yelled before raising her energized chain of hearts. 

“I’m the Sailor of love and there is no way I could let you hurt my friends.”

Jadeite attempted to get up as well to stand and fight but he ended up falling back to the ground. He felt his transformation slipping. If he didn’t get up to stop this, there would be no way that Minako would survive.   
“You fool.” He managed to get out in between ragged breathes as he attempted to keep his concentration. 

“If you are so anxious to be the first to die…then I shall take great pleasure in wiping you off the Earth.” Nephrite responded before glancing at Jadeite. “Do not intercede on her behalf brother.”

Without any warning he rushed in towards Sailor Venus, his halberd started to spark as he gathered lightning at the tip of the blade. A confident smile split across his face the moment his blade met her golden chain. 

“Stupid girl…”

Minako brought her chain up just in time to deflect the attack. She was about to throw the blade off when she realized her mistake. The lightning at the tip of his blade transferred into her chain and the current ran right into her body. With a scream she was blown back from the electricity coursing through her body. She wasn’t able to drop the chain as her hands had completely seized up. 

“Pathetic…now to finish you off.” Nephrite stated dispassionately. If this was the best that the Moon Kingdom had to offer he probably didn’t have much to worry about. Still he was not going to leave anything to chance.  
“Reaper’s Lightning!” He raised his free hand into the air just as a bolt of black lightning flowed down from the heavens. He then brought his arm down before thrusting his palm out towards the downed girl. The black lightning snaked through the air towards the blonde Sailor Senshi. The Reaper’s Lightning was a move developed to kill a target instantly. Unlike his normal attacks it had but one purpose. It would pierce the target’s body and overload the heart until it completely stopped beating. 

The black fork of lightning hit Minako full force. She screamed in pain as she attempted to turn away from the attack. Her heart started to beat faster and faster. Thinking fast she brought her chain up into the path of the black lightning. The lightning cut off from her heart and instead was diverted into the path of least resistance, the metal chain of hearts. 

Just as she felt her heart easing the black lightning snaked through the golden chain and back to her body only this time it coursed throughout her entire body. With a final gasp of pain she fell onto her back. Her entire uniform was smoldering at the edges and in some spots the uniform had holes burnt clean through. What was once unblemished white skin was now scorched black and brown in some places with electrical burns. Even her once golden hair was a patchwork of gold, brown, and black. 

“So Jadeite, this is the company you choose to keep? How do you expect to ever find the King with such weak allies? Leave the Moon to rot and we will find the King together.” Nephrite said turning his attention back to his brother in all but blood.

If only he could show Jadeite what he had seen this would be so much easier. He moved closer to the three without any need to worry. Sailor Venus wouldn’t be a threat to him any longer. The black lightning may not have stopped her heart but he sensed it caused enough damage that she would die shortly All of her major organs were failing her faster than her healing powers could regenerate them. The other girl the one he didn’t recognize but he could cut the defenseless Senshi down without any trouble. 

“Just answer me why…why are you doing this Nephrite?” Jadeite responded. He felt some of his energy being restored but not nearly enough to get into a brawl with Nephrite. Usagi was still recovering from the concussion she had received from earlier and Minako was down for the count possibly worse. 

“To stop the Moon from turning the people of Earth into mere toys for their own amusement and experimentation, Jadeite I take no pleasure in what I must do to save the Earth.” Nephrite responded with a hint of regret in his voice. “Now step away from the girl Jadeite or you may be caught in the blast. While I take no pleasure in this, I will not let sentimental feelings get in the way.” 

“I’ve fought tooth and nail to get you back Nephrite. I’m not going to lose you again when we’ve come so close to bringing you back from Beryl. Whatever the Moon did it was in the past! We can work with them to make a better future.” Jadeite responded a hint of desperation edging into his tone. 

Nephrite scoffed a little at Jadeite’s naivety. “Have you never wondered how we gained our powers brother? While the King always had the golden crystal the Shitennou never had such powers. The lines of the Shitennou of the North, South, West, and East were but normal human beings until Queen Serenity started playing God. But she went too far…she unlocked something she never meant to release. She tried to put it back and seal it away but I’ve discovered it.”

“I’ve unlocked a power greater than that of the Moon’s power. Pandora’s Box has been opened and despite the Queen’s attempts it will never be closed again with the King’s power and mine we shall make sure Earth is free of any threats to her borders.” The large Shitennou chuckled darkly as he looked pointedly at the two Sailor Senshi currently incapacitated. 

“I can’t believe the Queen would turn us into experiments. The King would have never allowed it!” Jadeite responded with a growl. It just didn’t make a damn lick of sense but there didn’t seem to be any talking Nephrite out of his path. 

“Believe it my brother. Why do you think that the Dark Kingdom started on Earth? The conditions were right and she let them flourish. She could have stepped in at the start and wiped them away with a wave of her scepter. Instead she decided to play God. She wanted to see how far humans would go to save themselves. We were playthings for her and I refuse to let this play out again!” Nephrite responded with a hint of steel in his voice.   
“Now step away from the girl Jadeite or you may be caught in the blast. While I take no pleasure in this, I will not let sentimental feelings get in the way.” 

Nephrite snapped the fingers of the hand not holding the halberd. Much like Jadeite’s power to call forth fire to his hand, Nephrite’s fingers started to spark. Little bolts of electricity started to dance in-between his spread out fingers. The bolts of electricity started to arc fingertip to fingertip. “So which one goes first?” 

“You won’t touch either of my loyal Senshi!” A voice called out from above causing both Nephrite and Jadeite to look above them. 

A girl barely older than sixteen gracefully floated down from the sky. She wore a sleeveless silver dress that flowed down to right above her feet. The silver bodice wrapped tightly accentuating her breasts. A black diamond crystal rested right below her neck on a silver chain. Her hands were covered in silver gloves that went up to her elbow. Her silver hair flowed behind her covering her exposed back. Her large doe eyes sparkled a silver-blue color under the stadium lights. All put together she looked just like a princess should beautiful, elegant, and regal in her actions. 

“I am the Princess of the Moon, in the name of the Moon I will punish you! For the memory of the fallen people of the Moon I shall banish you back to the Dark Kingdom and spread love across the Earth like seeds in the wind!” The girl declared before blowing a kiss in Nephrite’s general direction. 

Nephrite’s eyes widened in surprise when the girl identified herself. This was the Moon Princess? The one they had been searching for this entire time just appeared out of nowhere just like that? A frown crossed his face. If this girl truly was the Moon Princess then he would have to retreat for now. Her interference before he could study his powers could prove detrimental. 

Is this really the Moon Princess? Jadeite stared in abject horror…he couldn’t believe it. How was it even fair that he had to take charge of not one, not two, but three girls that had a propensity to yell out stupid declarations? He had a feeling his life had just gotten even more complicated. He attempted to bite back a sarcastic remark…but what could he say they were really just part of his nature.

“I’m sorry…I thought Venus here had cornered the market on stupid speeches but you come along and prove me wrong. I’d say I’m impressed but hey I guess in the fight against evil, the universe decided that why send me three strong warriors to end the threat when I could get three air headed blondes!” 

“Jadeite…” Nephrite cut in before the Princess could respond. “Brother…please come with me. We can revive the Earth. We can restore her glory to what she should have been if the Moon hadn’t subjected us to the cruel boot of their iron will.” 

“You know I can’t. I refuse to leave our allies in their time of need.” Jadeite responded with a tinge of regret. He thought when Nephrite had arrived that they had gained another ally in the fight. Instead it seemed they had collected a new enemy. 

Nephrite shook his head in annoyance. Jadeite didn’t understand. The man couldn’t understand what the Moon had done to him. He didn’t know the danger that he was in but clearly he wouldn’t be easy to convince. The Moon Kingdom had clearly gotten their claws into him.

“Living in your fantasy world won’t protect your people. The Earth is at a crossroads Jadeite. Will you let her people become a whore to the Moon just because you feel some companionship to her servants?” Without waiting for a response Nephrite disappeared in a blast of lightning. Fighting against a freshly charged Princess of the Moon would get him nowhere. He would return in the future and rid the world of her enemies.

Jadeite was left staring at the supposed Moon Princess with more than a little apprehension. After what Zoisite had pulled in the past with his ice creations he wasn’t exactly ready to roll out the red carpet.

“Do not fear Jadeite. I am Serenity…from what I understand you’ve been looking for me for a long time.” The girl smiled warmly before waving her hand above her head. A dust like substance trailed just behind her hand.  
“Moon Crystal Healing!” She cried out. The dust like particles started to glow a rainbow of colors as they floated through the wind. First they sought out Jadeite first before making their way to Usagi and next to Minako.   
Jadeite flexed his hand in surprise as he felt power returning to his limb. Minako’s burns slowly healed and scorched skin slowly knit itself back together. Finally Usagi regained consciousness. Jadeite turned to thank the Moon Princess but when he looked for her she was gone. In her place there was a single silver rose with a note. 

“What happened?” Usagi asked with a yawn as she stretched out. She looked around trying to blind the sleep out of her eyes. Last she remembered was a giant explosion. 

“You were an idiot and royally screwed up just about everything in ways that I previously thought were unimaginable.” Jadeite replied tersely. 

While the other two were recovering he carefully picked up the silver rose and found a small piece of parchment wrapped around the base. Reading it would have to wait though because the sound of sirens suddenly pierced the silence that had weighed heavily on the area. Clearly the police had realized the fighting was over and that meant it was time for them to make their escape. 

“Come on we gotta get out of here.” Jadeite muttered unhappily before he picked the still unconscious Sailor Venus up off the ground.

“Why does it seem that I end up carrying your worthless hide out of every battle since we arrived in Tokyo?” 

Jadeite scouted the area ahead to make sure they wouldn’t run into any trouble before he made a sailing leap over the stadium’s bleachers. The sound of Usagi’s clumsy clattering as her armored boots almost ended up tangled in the top bleacher seats caused him to close his eyes in annoyance. He could feel a stress migraine coming on. 

Dark Kingdom- 

Ami was trying to put the pieces together. In front of her was a giant desk with an interactive holographic map built in. The display currently had all of the attacks by the Dark Kingdom laid out across the globe. She had also inlaid a program to find when and where the Shitennou, Senshi, and Horsemen first originated. France of course had the most with a heavy clustering near Paris. There were a few in Germany from where Jadeite first originated. 

Finally there was an odd clustering of appearances in North America. It was odd as they were mainly along the West Coast. She didn’t know who that could have been or which of Beryl’s servants had been operating there. She had heard Zoisite had been conducting some experiments out there but nothing had ever been confirmed. 

What was odd was that she could pinpoint the origin point of where Beryl awakened…along with the remaining Shitennou. Their little beacons of power originating on different parts of the Earth. She could not locate the specific region where Luna appeared from. The rest of the Horsemen were all awakened in Japan along with Artemis but curiously the black cat was missing.

None of this would help of course. They were looking for a Princess not what Zoisite may have been doing in the United States or why the black cat was absent. Her train of thought was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Luna jumping up onto the edge of the table.

“Luna I wasn’t expecting you to be here.” 

Luna chuckled softly. “Well, Lord Death is currently occupied with Lady War and Conquest is currently amusing herself with training.”

“Ah…I see.” Ami responded quietly. Her thoughts drifting back to the quandary that was weighing on her mind. She could even see where the Moon Princess’s guardian appeared on the map. Her first appearance of course was almost masked by the cluster of attacks launched in the area along with Sailor V and Jadeite’s power signatures. 

“Something on your mind…” Luna tentatively ventured. She could tell by the look that Pestilence had something on her mind. The girl was tenacious in the way she went after a problem. If something was bothering her she would find a way to solve the mystery. The black cat absently scanned the map but just as before there was no power signature that resonated with the Moon Princess’s powers. 

“Yes…” Ami ventured quietly. She almost didn’t ask the question but ended up pushing forward. It would bother her if she didn’t know. “Why didn’t you appear on the map?” To make her point clear, Ami slowly spun the holographic globe to once again confirm that the cat actually appeared on the map. “In fact only you did not originate on Earth.”

“Of course because I wasn’t awakened on Earth and the wise man provided me very specific instructions that I must find each of you and awaken you in a very special way.” Luna responded with a cat like smile. Taking a moment to input a few commands into the computer the Earth suddenly shrank down and panned out. The other planets in the Galaxy slowly came into view. The power signature that Ami had been searching for were coming from the dark side of the Moon.

“I was reawakened by a power greater than even our true Queen.” 

“Stronger…” Ami ventured in a quizzical voice. She stared at where the signature was coming from. Her attention momentarily shifted to Pluto…odd. There was a power signature that originated at Pluto…long before any of the others had. Perhaps…no that wouldn’t have made any sense, that power would have made their presence known years ago to the Dark Kingdom be it friendly or foe. Shifting her attention back to the Moon she managed to find the cat’s power signature.

Luna nodded in affirmation. The black cat was about to explain further when another power signature suddenly appeared on Earth. She casually glanced over at the new energy source before her eyes widened in surprise. It was the Princess! The Moon Princess had made her appearance there was no other explanation. The power signature matched to some extent the power of the Silver Imperium Crystal. 

“Ami! Quick a new power signature in Japan!” 

Without having to be told twice Ami quickly readjusted the holographic image to zoom in on the Earth again, specifically on Japan. She quickly spotted Zoisite’s ice blue power signature. It disappeared a moment later leaving behind a dark blue signature, most likely Nephrite. She quickly spotted the yellow of Minako, the fire red of Jadeite, and the white power signature of the Moon’s Guardian. Finally she spotted what Luna was looking at. A power signature had appeared and it was silver in appearance. 

Ami reached up to her left ear and tapped on the small silver device that activated her visor. The blue semitransparent visor popped up in front of her face. The heads up display automatically integrated with the information on the interactive map. 

“Analyze new power signature, run against Silver Imperium Crystal and Queen Serenity.” She commanded. 

The two patiently waited while the computer installed in the visor ran the new signature against the information they had from the war against the Moon Kingdom. A moment later the results popped up in front of Ami on her visor’s display. The match was at 90%...more than enough to say with certainty it was Serenity’s daughter. 

“It’s her!” 

“We must inform Lord Death immediately!” Luna cried. 

Ami rushed into the room of Rei and Endymion without even bothering to knock. She briefly took into account that The two were currently in different states of disrobement. While Endymion sat on the bed in a pair of black jeans, Rei was currently drawing the covers up as high as she could but it couldn’t hide her bare shoulders from Ami’s sight. The fact she was in bed was enough for Ami to surmise what she had interrupted. While normally this would cause a blush to come to her face the information she had uncovered was too important to wait on. Thankfully she hadn’t thought of grabbing Makoto first. 

“Lord Death.” Ami said with a hint of embarrassment entering her tone. “The Moon Princess has appeared.”

A/N: Sorry it has been a while but yeah as above…busy-ish. Thanks again for reading and reviewing everyone! Next chapter will of course have the fall out. Let me know if you spotted the reference to Jordan he will make his appearance soon. Sorry if everyone thought that Nephrite was going to be returned to normal and happily join Usagi’s merry band. I’ll have more explanations next chapter.   
(1) Legitimate restaurant in Tokyo


	7. Senshi Hunters

A/N: Hey guys thanks for dealing with my editing. I appreciated the responses I received for last chapter. I hope everyone is enjoying the show so far. If you couldn’t tell this is going to be a rather long and drawn out piece of fiction barring any losses of inspiration. This chapter is going to be a lot shorter. I only say that because I am going to OBX for a week and I wanted to get something out before I left. Hopefully I will have more time to devote to writing soon!   
Oh and as always best viewed in 3/4ths or ½ page view. 

Chapter 7: Senshi Hunters 

Tokyo – Kasumigaseki District

“You called.” Kent ground out in annoyance. Just to show how little he respected the man that had called him in he didn’t bother to snub the cigarette dangling from his left hand before entering the office. On second thought…he probably should have. Judging by the papers haphazardly scattered about the office, it wouldn’t take much to turn this hell hole into a blazing inferno. 

“Have a seat…Mr. Kent.” The man behind the desk responded without even bothering to look up from his work on the computer. 

“It’s Sergeant, Tomoe.” Kent grumbled as he pulled back the seat that contained less paper work sitting on it. With a disdainful glance he simply pushed the pile off the seat without a care. Not like it would matter anyway. By the time he had taken a seat he noted that the professor was staring at him in annoyance. 

“And it is Professor to you.” The Professor responded with a nasty smile. He took a moment to study the counter-terrorist agent. It would be interesting to see the man’s reaction. In his time here he noticed that Kent never liked to play ball. More often than not he was the major thorn in his side. This time though…well he had gone well and above Kent’s authority. After he presented his evidence to the board and the abilities that this would give the Tokyo PD it was an easy sell. 

“Get to the point. I don’t have time to waste talking about your science experiments.” Kent responded. The look that Tomoe was giving him was a look of glee. It meant the crazy bastard had gotten something he wanted. Kent could guarantee that whatever had occurred would be something that’d piss him off. With an exaggerated drag of his cigarette he made a point of blowing the smoke out right towards Tomoe. 

To his credit Tomoe didn’t even react. No he would not react to Kent’s petty little attempts to provoke him. After a moment of starring each other down Tomoe finally broke first. The man tossed a folder onto the already cluttered table. 

“I wanted to show you a little something is all.” Tomoe continued with a grin. “Just a little information exchange between allies you understand.” 

With a wary glance leveled at Tomoe, Kent tentatively reached out and opened the folder that Tomoe had tossed him. There was nothing good that would come of it that was for sure. The first thing that greeted him was a picture. It was grainy and in poor light but he could make out a figure that appeared to be in a knight uniform. In fact he would have thought it was that odd sword wielding girl if not for the jade green sword in the figure’s right hand. He absently flipped through the folder. Most of the photos were of the same type. Grainy photos of beasts, the jade sword knight, and a small man with a pony tail. 

“Well thanks for show and tell Tomoe but other than your normal chicken scratch I don’t see how this pertains to my unit.” Kent responded before tossing the photos and folder back towards Tomoe with a grunt of annoyance. Once again a pointless waste of his time by the crack pot professor of the R&D unit. 

“Oh my…so dense as always. You never see the big picture do you?” Tomoe clucked disapprovingly with a faux disappointed tone while shaking his head. 

“Excuse my ignorance. Not everyone has the time to look through grainy photographs.” Kent responded with a roll of his eyes. 

“Now now…no need to get so testy.” Tomoe responded in a mocking tone.

“You must understand what you are looking at I suppose. Not everyone can discern what is on these photos. You see these were all taken in America. All the incidents involved two men and creatures that your force has faced down here to varying degrees of failure.” Tomoe added the little jab in there at the end just to watch Kent explode. 

“Our force is doing the best it can you damn crackpot.” Kent responded by slamming his fist down on the table. He was not in the mood for this shit. He already had a dressing down from his superiors for the fiasco at the school track event. If there was one thing he didn’t need it was more mockery from this nut job. 

“Those things aren’t human and our weapons don’t even scratch them.” 

“Oh I know…but in short order the Tokyo Police Department will have something to finally combat the menace. I collaborated with some American scientists. They recovered trace residue from the scenes of the fights in those pictures. After hard work on my part.” Tomoe let a smug smile cross his face at those words. 

“We managed to recreate the energy. It is highly volatile and of course. We found certain people resonate with the energy. Certain people in your department actually and after bringing the case to the higher ups…well they were more than excited to find a way to fight back against the unstoppable. I truly am a genius…one may even say a God among men.” Tomoe chuckled darkly. 

Kent’s eyes narrowed in anger and before he could stop himself he launched himself half way across the desk. With a wild grab he managed to catch hold of Tomoe’s tie and reeled the sick bastard in. 

“Listen here you sick son of a bitch you touch any of my men or women, I’ll bury you where they’ll never find you. Do you understand?” To make his point clear he pulled on the tie causing the good doctor to make a strangled sound as he tried to gasp for air. It left Kent with a certain satisfaction as he watched the man attempt to get away from his iron grip. After another full thirty seconds of watching Tomoe thrash about he finally   
released Tomoe. 

The older man fell backwards into his chair and immediately started to loosen his tie. He eyed the younger man with disdain while straightening himself up as best he could. Ugly monkey couldn’t keep his hands to himself. He should have known the man would throw a temper tantrum. Lower forms could never understand the importance of advancing the human race.

“Simpletons like you always stand in the way of progress. The great inventors faced such persecution by the small minded people of the church and their hordes of worshippers. Do you think I would let something as petty as a physical threat stop me?” Tomoe half chuckled and half gasped for air as a cough racked his chest from the earlier strangling. 

Kent just stared back at Tomoe staring holes into the man as he attempted to figure out what the hell Tomoe’s game was. Did the bastard really just call in here to make idle threats? No highly doubtful the bastard wouldn’t call him down here just for that. It must mean he already was in the process of doing his little experiment. Which meant it was time to go to the chief. Tomoe had a history of dodgy projects and working around   
the system by picking and choosing who he informed about his little experiments. 

“Thinking of stopping me?” Tomoe grinned. 

“I can tell…you have that stupid look of a monkey trying to figure out a puzzle that is far too advanced for your tiny brain to work out. You see it’s too late. This experiment has been blessed by the Superintendent General. Follow me…if you’d like to see Officer Tenou and Kaiou become the first Senshi Hunters.” Tomoe pulled himself out of his seat and passed around his desk before heading out of his office and towards the lab. To his satisfaction he heard Kent jump out of his chair and follow him like an obedient little dog…just as it should be. 

Kent followed behind Tomoe subconsciously moving his hand to his gun and resting it on the grip before moving it off the grip only to do it all again a moment later. He was fuming, why the hell would the two of them consent to this without his approval? Hadn’t they heard of Professor Tomoe and his reputation for experiments that ended with participants that conveniently disappeared? So enthralled in his own thoughts he almost ran right into the back of Tomoe. Luckily he was paying a little attention. 

“And there they are…my two beautiful huntresses.” Tomoe had stopped in an observation room. Large panes of glass overlooked a lab below. Scientists from Tokyo’s ministry of defense and from the United States department of science swarmed around the two female officers.

Both women were covered in IV lines and monitoring equipment that ran under their clothing. That was where the differences ended. Haruka wore a pair of loose canvas pants in white. A loose white gi covered much of her upper body. Intricate golden bands wrapped around the arms and legs of her gi. At her side wrapped in the obi was a sword made of black crystal. 

On the other hand Michiru looked like she was dropped in from a Special Forces team. She wore military fatigues in a blue and grey urban pattern. Black combat boots and black Kevlar armor covered most of her vulnerable joints and chest. Strapped across her body were guns of every type. 

The two were currently sedated for the procedure and being hooked up with monitoring equipment in preparation of upgrading them using Professor Tomoe’s Hunter Serum. 

“Of course you’ll notice the two are a little different…you see I have named them Sabre Huntress and Trigger Huntress. I’ve infused the powers from the residue directly into their weapons. They’ll be our answer to the invaders…they are the next step to human evolution. While Officer Tenou shall be engaging the enemy with her space sword the survivors will be wiped out by Officer Kaiou long sight ability.” Tomoe admired the ongoing work. It had taken years for him to unravel what the Americans had found a few years ago even with his brilliant mind. Still the challenge was worth it based on what his calculations predicted. 

“Now watch. This is the fun part! We’re going to inject the Hunter Serum directly into their bodies. Now not only will they have superior weapons to wield but they will become living weapons themselves.” Tomoe stated proudly. 

Tomoe stood there by a shocked Kent as the procedure started. One of the scientists below withdrew a large needle with a visibly silver liquid inside the tube. The substance almost appeared to be an ethereal white from its brilliance. The unnamed scientist dressed in full biohazard gear tapped the needle once before plunging the needle into Haruka’s heart and depressing the plunger. The silver liquid shot into Haruka and briefly caused her to glow.

“Hmm…I would have expected some reaction based on our test subjects…” Tomoe responded in a tone that almost sounded disappointed at the turn of events. He watched for some sign of complication like the test subjects had but it appeared the girl’s body was accepting the serum with no muss or fuss.

“Reaction?” Kent finally responded after coming out of his stupor by Tomoe’s words. Despite wanting to ring Tomoe’s neck he kept his eyes firmly transfixed on the events taking place below. While a few scientists had stayed to monitor Haruka, the remaining team had moved onto Michiru and was preparing to do the same thing as they had done to Haruka. A new vial was fitted to a new needle and the same process began again.

“Yes…well the test subjects didn’t have the internal energy your two compatriots have. I assume their bodies were not able to handle the power from their screams of agony, I can only imagine it was much akin to shooting pure liquid hellfire into their veins. Luckily these two seem to be doing just fine…probably due to their internal power.” Tomoe conjectured absent mindedly as he continued to watch the procedure.

What he wouldn’t give to be down there administering the serum he had developed in person. Unfortunately after the series of accidents with the test subjects he had been taken out of the actual lab setting. It had been inhumane in their words. How could he let those poor people suffer? Did no one understand the costs of progress? Well they’d be sorry. Those at the top that thought themselves so clever wouldn’t know what hit them. First his little Huntresses would wipe out the invaders. Once they proved their worth the fools would no doubt order more humans that could handle the Hunter serum to be found.

Tomoe let a small smile cross his face. By the time they realized the coding he put into the formula made the Huntresses loyal to his commands upon activation…well it’d be too late. Japan would create his own personal army and their doom for him. How delightfully clever it was. To make it even better the fools in America were already working on their own team of Hunters and Huntresses. For what better way to insure your victory than having two powerful countries creating the means of their destruction.

Kent watched helplessly as Michiru and Haruka were used for Tomoe’s lab experiments. Both officers had received the serum at this point and thankfully neither was showing any kind of adverse reactions. It didn’t make him want to strangle Tomoe any less just because the two had survived the initial dosage. The long term ramifications could end up killing them tomorrow or do god knows what to their bodies. The man beside him by the authority of the Japanese government had just been given the power to play god and from the look of sheer bliss on the man’s face he loved every second of it.

“I swear Tomoe…if either of them ends up hurt because of this…” Kent trailed off as he noticed that the two below were coming back around. The medical scientists on the team immediately swarmed the two girls. From the looks of it they were none worse from the wear. He mostly came to this conclusion due to the fact he could tell Haruka was yelling and Michiru was waving the medical personnel away.

“See Kent…they are just perfectly fine and now we finally have a weapon superior to even the atomic bomb. These two will put an end to any more of these unexplained creatures and super powered humans that keep showing up. They are a threat to our continued safety and must be eliminated. From what I’ve found the French had a similar problem for the past few years before the attacks stopped and the super humans disappeared. United States faced a similar issue a few years ago but suddenly that stopped as well. Now they’ve come to Japan. All threats to Japan will be eliminated. ” Tomoe responded blandly as he became bored with watching the girls go through forced physical evaluations from the scientist team below.

“I’ve seen those so called threats up close and personal. They’re nothing more than school kids. I could see it in their eyes. One of them was scared to death. I don’t know what is going on here but you can’t just put out an execution order on school children and I’ll be damned if you force two of my officers to become cold blooded killers.” Kent roared in anger. He was ready to put a bullet in Tomoe’s back. Damned be the consequences he would not let his department be run roughshod by this man and become part of Tomoe’s machinations.

“They’re under my command and unless there is a direct threat to the public, I will not have them killing children be they super powered children or not.” Kent leveled Tomoe with a glare. He was just daring the man to countermand his authority over the counter-terrorism unit. It’d be a cold day in hell before he started taking commands from the scientist and he still wondered what in the world the council was thinking.  
Of course deep down he knew the reason for the green light, Tomoe promised them a power that no other country had. With the geo political affairs occurring across the world he supposed he shouldn’t be surprised that the council was so easily swayed. Who would dare threaten Japan if the response was sending in soldiers injected with a serum that allowed them to shrug off a tank round or dodge bullets? Tomoe had used their current fears of something occurring between Japan and China to sway their decision. It was disgusting that the council fell for such a simple tactic.

Tomoe studied Kent silently while debating if he should provoke the bear or not. He could point out that he was but second in command of the counter terrorism unit but perhaps such a subtle nuance would be beyond Kent’s recognition. After a moment of thought he decided to allow the man his little win. Besides if he pushed him too hard the man would push back and he wasn’t in the position where he could afford trouble. The project was in its infancy and he was already taking a great risk in the fact that he was banking on his colleagues not catching his little addition to the serum.

“Of course…it will always be your team. I was merely suggesting for the safety of the people of Japan that the threats be removed in an expedient manner but it is of course your decision.” Tomoe acquiesced with a humble smile.

“I’ll be having words with the Superintendent General about this entire operation.” Kent slammed his hand against the glass with enough force that the entire window shook like a bowl of jello. To his satisfaction it must have caught the attention of the scientists below along with Haruka and Michiru based on the fact everyone was now staring up at them. Tomoe’s voice redirected his attention to the man in front of him.

“As you will, just be careful with your temper…you wouldn’t want them to reassign the Huntress personnel to my command. After all we can’t have the unit be compromised by someone who can’t express their emotions properly. Who knows what effect that would have on the fragile psyche of our experiments…er…officers…of course.” Tomoe chuckled to himself at his little slip of the tongue. If anyone thought they were anything more than a new experiment to him then they had another thing coming. He wouldn’t rest until he was able to create the perfect human. One that wouldn’t age, wouldn’t get sick, and most importantly wouldn’t die.

“Hn…” Kent muttered to himself before turning to observe Tenou and Kaiou below. The pair seemed to be holding up and he couldn’t spot any adverse reaction. Still it was his responsibility to look after the two of them and protect them from Tomoe whether they wanted him to or not. With one final glare leveled at Tomoe he made his way out of the observation room and back into the hall. He headed back towards the medical wing. It wouldn’t surprise him if they eventually moved the two over for observation and when they did, he’d be there to chew the two of them out for the most brain dead move he’d ever seen.

Tokyo – Ariake District 

“What now Zero…what do I do now.” Nephrite muttered to himself. Ever since that blasted cat had shown him the truth of the Queen’s hypocrisy he’d been alone. Jadeite didn’t believe him and Zoisite was brainwashed by Beryl. To make it worse he was without support in the world. With no friends or family the man took to living in a nearby park. He currently was sitting on a thick tree branch high in one of the parks few evergreen trees.  
In a way he still found himself shocked at the lengths that Queen Serenity would go. What she would do to insure that the Moon Kingdom reigned supreme. Zero had shown him when she had originally visited Earth. It was well before his time but it was when Zero was created. The Queen knew something dark was coming, something that could wipe out the entire universe. Did she share this knowledge with the other planets under her command? Of course not…perish the thought that she trust anyone else other than the Time Guardian with her plan.

Instead she decided to use Earth as a proving ground for the new power. She wanted to make a stronger Senshi and while she would never dare to experiment with any of the governing council member’s daughters, the Earth was considered free game. They were considered little more than animals. With the silver imperium crystal she contacted the spirit of Earth and used her sheer will power to force it into creating a new power. While most planetary Senshi had access to only a small amount of their planet’s life energy at any given time save dire emergencies, she made Zero sentient. The Queen even allowed the spirit to have free reign over picking who Zero would bless with the spirit energy of Earth to create the new Senshi.

A small snort left Nephrite’s nose at that idea. The sentient spirit of Earth had quickly realized what it was and that the Queen was only painting Earth as a target. The massive spirit energy produced would ironically draw the very thing to Earth and their Galaxy that she sought to protect against. Zero had other plans though.

It had been an act of fate that she had found a familiar bond with the Shitennou of the Western Kingdom. Zero chose Nephrite’s great great great grandfather as her means of protecting the Earth. By bonding with Nephrite’s ancestor she became even more powerful. The man, Beilstein, became a threat to the Queen and her Kingdom. Beilstein was attacked and Zero was suppressed by the Queen. Locked away never to be released again…but Zero hadn’t died in that fight. With the remainder of her power she had locked herself away into Beilstein’s bloodline. Zero was passed down from generation to generation in a long slumber until that foolish   
girl had unlocked her when she had touched Nephrite. 

It was odd though…Zero had told him that only the Queen or one of her descendants could release her. A frown marred Nephrite’s face but he saw the Moon Princess appear. Was it a rouse? The real princess in front of him the whole time and he distracted by the decoy? No…the girl that had descended was also giving off power that Zero associated with the Moon. 

With a growl Nephrite ran his hands through his hair. It all made so little sense. He debated withdrawing into his mind to discuss his next moves further with Zero but the entity had withdrawn from him. He supposed he could understand. The being was currently recovering from her long slumber and assimilating all the knowledge that Nephrite had of the current world events. Not that he had much from working for the she bitch.   
It had been so quiet the past few weeks. Zoisite no doubt had retreated and was licking his wounds. Jadeite and his companions had been absent without the Dark Kingdom to drawn them out. He of course had been busy with Zero and a girl he had met. Speaking of he glanced down at his watch and noted the time. He had agreed to meet Naru for ice cream with her friend. This was his first time meeting the girl so he supposed he would have to be on her best behavior. 

Tokyo Tower – Shiba District

A man dressed in full plate armor stood on top of Tokyo tower. His feet bent in an almost unbelievable angle to maintain balance. He studied the new city with no small amount of contempt. If he was honest he was pissed that he was here…but it was out of his control. He needed to find the Moon Princess to heal his little sister. Her power was required and if he could find any way to copy or imitate the Silver Imperium Crystal’s healing power he’d leave the entire bunch of them to sort out the mess they had gotten themselves into. 

He knew he was walking into a proverbial powder keg. He never really could understand the Queen’s theory of wiping everyone’s memory. As if that would help them if the Dark Kingdom returned. Luckily he had enough presence of mind to alter the changes to the effects of the Queen’s final enchantments. Still it left him in a downright shitty position. He’d have to end up babysitting these brats and honestly he was in no mood to spoon feed them. 

All he wanted to do was track down the Moon Princess, find the silver imperium crystal, and heal Morgan. Was that really too much to ask? Well from his experiences in Los Angeles…yes…yes it was. He reached out his hand once more and attempted to locate the crystal. If he could identify where it was he could warp to the location and just take it…or borrow it as it were. Knowing the Moon Princess, Usagi wouldn’t even notice it was gone anyway. So if it disappeared for a while no harm, no foul. 

The dark pulse left the tips of his fingertips as he attempted to manipulate space to take him to the silver crystal. Once more it fizzled out completely. The dark pulse Jordan released completely collapsed on itself before winking out of existence. An annoyed mutter left his lips. “Just freakin great…Jadeite and Minako should have awoken Usagi by now. If they failed to do it Luna should have and if she hasn’t that means…ugh.” Maybe he should just admit defeat. Dealing with Artemis was a pain in his royal ass. The cat was so scatter brained…it was no surprise he was Minako’s companion.   
“Once again a knight’s work is never done. Time to track down the insurmountable jackass with his companions freakin Bubbles the powerpuff girl and Snarf the incompetent scaredy cat. If I’m lucky the dunderheads won’t have screwed up anything beyond what I can repair.” He said to himself with a long suffering sigh. Why was it that he somehow got charged with the duty to clean up the god damn mess everyone else made? Since when had everyone else thrown their hands in the hair and nominated him nursemaid for the entire operation. 

With a final grunt of annoyance he propelled himself off Tokyo tower and into the night.

A/N:   
I will probably have a new job that theoretically will provide me with some more down time so excitement abound for more chapters posting. My beta hopefully will be undead from summer work soon so will be back to editing my terrible grammar.  
I have so much information for this story that I have a poll up for what you guys want to learn more about. I will do my best to honor requests unless I need to withhold certain information or provide certain information for a plot point. Still I’m interested to see what you are interested in reading about. If you want more Dark Kingdom go vote! If you need more Jordan bitching and moaning about his fate let me know. Or if you want to actually learn more about what is happening with Nephrite go ahead and post the request.   
Final note reviews as always are appreciated and I do attempt to PM people. For those that I can’t PM: CatSpirit: It is not a MoonLight Knight issue.   
Pizzigri: Thank you for noting my terrible repeat I didn’t catch it the first read through  
TropicalRemix: Not a decoy bwhahaha.  
Agoraphobia: Yes…Jadeite is in a spot but it is about to get worse...for his mental health anyway.   
If anyone is wondering who this guy at the end is please read Ginsan’s awesome story “A Knight’s Work Is Never Done” or Lynnwood’s “Silver Alliance” to get a peek into the chaos that is about to ensue.


	8. Knight of Phaeton

A/N: Well hope I haven’t overwhelmed anyone yet. Our stage is finally set. We still have Sailor Saturn and Sailor Pluto missing for the time being but no worries they’ll get here soon enough. I know it’s been a slow set up but we’re finally going to start speeding up a little. So hold on because things are about to get interesting. What am I saying? All lies it will probably still stay the same speed it’s always been. The story is like a good BBQ low and slow.

Ninja Edit: 09/16/2014

Chapter 8: Knight of Phaeton

 

Dark Kingdom – Throne Room

“The demon blade Dreadnought…” Beryl whispered in an almost reverent tone as she stroked the edge of the pristine white blade lovingly. Her attention finally returned to the two Shitennou that stood before the throne that she sat upon.

“This blade will bring Jadeite back to our side. It is infused with my aura. The moment that Jadeite takes hold of it, he will find his purifying flames suppressed. He will become my loyal servant once more.” Beryl smiled at the mere thought. Nephrite’s betrayal had hurt them. Put them in a weakened position. If she didn’t bring her numbers back up soon, Lord Death may make a move.

“And just how do you propose to get Jadeite to just pick up your magic demon blade?” Zoisite sneered in utter contempt. The bitch was completely delusional if she thought the self-important prick would just pick up a blade lying around.

“Well it occurs to me that it is your problem, Zoisite. I’m putting this operation in your charge. You’ll have to figure out a way to make him take the blade.” Beryl responded with a slight smirk. With a final look at the blade in her hand she sheathed the katana again before tossing the sword to Zoisite.

Despite his surprise, Zoisite managed to have the mind to grab the blade by the sheath. Curiosity got the best of the ice Shitennou and the man twisted the blade this way and that. Perfect balance from what he could feel. The only problem of course was the evil aura pulsating from the blade. He warily strapped the blade to his waist beside his own rapier.

“Your directions are impeccable as always.” Zoisite muttered sarcastically.

“Oh I apologize, Zoisite, I didn’t realize that it was my job to do your job for you.” Beryl drawled sarcastically. An ugly sneer overtook her face as she contemplated the insubordinate man before her. Perhaps it was time to have Kunzite create a replacement. One that would listen to the orders she gave rather than talk back at every turn.

Zoisite shot the she-bitch a glare. His grip tightened on the sheath of the demon blade as he clenched his teeth to keep from retorting. Damn she-bitch would love to be given a reason to punish him. A quick glance at Kunzite confirmed the cold bastard was still standing there. Not a concern on his face. He couldn’t trust either of them. If what Conquest had said about Kunzite, then he was just as bad as Beryl, possibly worse.

“I’ll be going then.” He muttered mainly to himself before phasing out to figure out a way to get Jadeite to take up the demon blade that Beryl had enchanted.

Beryl waited a moment to make sure that Zoisite had truly disappeared before turning her attention to Kunzite. The less Zoisite knew the better as far as she was concerned. The idiot did have a rather large mouth and if they got him talking. Well the entire plan that Kunzite was working on would fall apart.

“How comes project regicide?” Beryl queried with some amount of curiosity entering her normally bored tone.

 “The first test has been completed without any complication. The Black Silver Crystal has given off the same power signature as the real Silver Crystal. From her report the traitors and the Princess’s Guardian really think she is the Princess. ” Kunzite responded with a bored expression on his face.

“Excellent. We’ll have Mamoru and his Horsemen chasing shadows. She will worm her way into the confidence of Jadeite and his whores.” Beryl chuckled to herself. It was all too delicious.

“And you’re sure that the Dark Silver Crystal will resonate with the Silver Crystal when it is close?” Beryl asked after the thought popped into her head. The entire point of the clone of Princess Serenity was to find the actual Princess and kill her. The fact that it would have Mamoru and his little whores going after a fake was simply a bonus.

“Everything appears to be resonating like expected. The Black Silver Crystal showed signs of life during the last encounter. The real Moon Princess is close. She’ll be found soon and my clone is under the impression that she is the real Moon Princess.” Kunzite responded.

“And she won’t hesitate to murder the real Princess?” Beryl questioned with a raised eyebrow.

“Of course not, while her personality is based off of the original Princess, I altered her brain while she was growing. She will believe anyone holding the Silver Imperium Crystal is an imposter and a threat to her rule.” Kunzite finished. It had been a delicate balance and he had two backups of the Princess just in case the original clone decided to rebel against her programming.

“Excellent. Remember while I want her to gain their trust she must not interfere with my plan to bring Jadeite back into the fold. She must be kept on a tight leash or she could single handedly end us.” Beryl cautioned.

“I know this well my Queen. I have been closely monitoring all of the battles. I will continue to only allow her short access to meeting them when they are too weak to follow her. The appropriate excuses will be made as to why she can’t return to them permanently.” Kunzite responded.

Kunzite to be honest already found himself becoming annoyed with the clone. The girl prattled on and on about returning to Earth and properly leading her Senshi into battle. It was rather annoying. For the time being she was at least buying the excuse that there was an imposter afoot. If she were to leave the safety of her chamber for good she’d be assassinated by said imposter.  

“Do not fail me Kunzite. If this plan falls through or Mamoru discovers our hand in this, it will not just be the end of your projects, it will be the end of all of us.” Beryl didn’t bother hiding the concern in her tone. The resources devoted to this project were astounding. If it fell through they would be removed from duty. By removed of course it would mean that they’d be converted to energy.

Kunzite nodded once before he passed out of the throne room without another word.

Beryl was left to think about her next move alone. It was a long game that she played but if she could keep up the bluff then Mamoru would realize what was happening too late to counter her. If he found out though…then it would all fall to pieces.

It had almost all slipped out of her fingers once before. Thoughts absently drifted back to her awakening. Prior to this life she had been a Princess on Earth. While she did not have the standing that some of the other Kingdom’s Princesses had, she was a well-read woman. It had been her hope that her ability to read and write would bring her favor with the King and through the king, the prince.  Through studying forbidden scripture she had figured out that a forbidden power had been locked away on Earth.

She had been so excited with what she found. The moment she had figured out the location she took her information to the King of Earth. If she was honest, it was her wish to be chosen as Endymion’s bride.

It was not to be…no in fact she was informed to return to her Kingdom. Beryl was ordered to never return to the capital city or speak of such information ever again. Perhaps it wouldn’t have turned out the way it had if she had just listened.

Upon returning to her Kingdom she had rallied her people around the idea that she had found a power, a power that would finally make them equal to those that sat atop their thrones on the planets that circled the sky above them. If the people above would not share their power, then she would have the people of Earth take it. Through her power the Silver Alliance would be shattered and she would reign supreme.

Perhaps it was that the King of Earth did not want to see Earth turn into another Phaeton, or perhaps he wanted to silence a trouble maker. It didn’t matter because he unfairly stripped her of her station. Banished to the salt mines and abandoned by her family. She worked alongside other political prisoners doing back breaking labor that she never thought she herself would ever have to do.

It had taken a full year before she realized that no one was coming to save her. It was then that she escaped the mines and found the source of the power that the scriptures talked of.

It was then she began her assault. She had killed the King of Earth with her first act. Endymion took the reins of the throne shortly thereafter. The man she once fantasized about taking as a husband, started to fight back. Where she once over ran the Earthlings with ease, forces under his direction broke her ranks and sent her forces scattering back to the far corners of his kingdom.

Eventually she was backed into a corner. Even assaulting the other planets had done little once the thrice damned Queen Serenity had cajoled the Earth into assisting her.

In a last desperate gamble she had managed to infect the Earthen Shitennou and they in turn managed to infect Endymion along with their armies. The battle for the Moon had been a glorious plan and while she gambled everything, it wasn’t enough.

Queen Serenity had sent her daughter and her guardians to the future. Luck must have been on Beryl’s side. The Queen didn’t have enough power to eradicate her completely and only managed to lock her and the Shitennou away in their Soul Crystals. The rest of the Moon suffered a much similar fate.

Some lucky few were sent into the future to be reborn while others were stuck in stasis. The Youma were similarly eradicated but strangely she could feel the pulsating souls that belonged to her Seven Great Youma the holders of the Rainbow Crystals.

Still she had to wonder what the Wiseman’s true plans were.

_With a gasp, Beryl became aware of her surroundings. One minute the sounds of battle raged all around her. Now there was nothing but silence. As her eyes readjusted to the light as she slowly took everything in. The entire palace was in ruins. A thick layer of dust covered everything in the throne room there were pieces of glass everywhere and nothing was left intact.  A small smirk crossed her lips. At least the Moon Kingdom had fallen in their attack._

_“Beryl…I see you’re awake.” A raspy voice called out from the throne. A figure in a tattered cloak sat upon the broken throne. In the figure’s lap laid a staff._

_“And you are?” Beryl responded in a snide tone. She eyed the figure warily as she slowly got to her feet. While the figure hadn’t made any moves towards her, she didn’t trust strange figures sitting on the throne._

_“An interested party.” The figure responded with a dry chuckle._

_“An interested party in what?” Beryl queried with a small quirk of her eyebrow. On second glance the palace was even worse off than she originally thought it was. While there were no bodies left in the palace of the Moon Kingdom, there were clear signs of destruction. Most of the windows were blasted open and allowed the Lunar winds to enter the palace._

_The pure white marble of the floor, walls, and ceilings marred and pitted by blast marks. Here and there she could even spot discarded weapons and broken pieces of furniture. If the Moon Kingdom had survived then someone would have rebuilt their palace._

_“The Princess of the Moon was sent into the future. If you do nothing, the Moon Kingdom shall be revived on Earth.” The figure interrupted Beryl’s train of thought._

_“What?” Beryl responded with a hint of anger. The Moon Kingdom was still alive? And they would dare to take over the Earth and use if to restore their own despicable kingdom? A growl started to resonate in her throat._

_“I have seen the future. If the Moon Princess is allowed to reunite with her true love than the Moon Kingdom shall rise again.” The figure stated in a raspy voice._

_“But be ware…for her true love is not the obvious choice. You must activate your Shitennou to stop this from passing. One shall betray you from the start…if you are unable to return him to your allegiance…all is lost. The Princess will be reunited with her true love and you shall perish.” The figure continued once Beryl’s attention was captured._

_“Your Shitennou, Beryl…heed my warning.” The figure reminded her once more. After a moment of rummaging throughout the clock the person wore, four soul crystals were produced. All of them were clear except a small dark spot in the middle. The dark spot expanded and contracted like a beating heart. Each of the Shitennou was locked away but they much like her were still alive._

_“And if I don’t activate them?” Beryl questioned with a raised eyebrow. If it was this much trouble, then perhaps it was best to just leave them in their state of suspended animation. It wasn’t exactly like she needed them. She could just call up Youma herself and remove the Princess herself._

_“Then you will be cut down by the members of Queen Metalia’s second group.” The figure responded calmly before tossing the four Soul Crystals to Beryl._

_With a growl of annoyance, Beryl lunged forward and managed to catch the crystals that contained her Shitennou._

_“Second group?” Beryl whispered almost to herself._

_“But she said I was her only servant!”_

_“Things have changed. While you’ve slumbered, Metalia has been gaining more and more power. Did you really believe yourself irreplaceable?” The figure responded in a bemused tone._

_“Then you’re one of her servants as well?” Beryl responded in a bitter tone. It wasn’t fair. She had been the one that had found Metalia in the first place. She had been the one that had awakened the demon from her slumber._

_“I’m just here to give you a second chance. What Metalia wants bears no weight on my mission. I suggest you find the Princess quickly, that is if you want to be the victor.” The figure responded in a bored tone. Without waiting for Beryl to respond, the figure disappeared in a blink of light._

_Beryl stared at the broken throne that the figure had sat in a moment ago. She’d have to prove to Metalia that she could finish what she had started. For now though she’d have to retreat and find a safe place to restore the Shitennou in her care. First she would need power. Then she would find a way to close the loop hole that the figure in black had informed her of. She would never let one of her Shitennou betray her._

And yet here she sat trying to regain the control of Jadeite. She should’ve known it’d be him. When she was brainwashing the quartet, Jadeite was the one that put up the largest fight. She assumed at the time when she originally ambushed the quartet that he was not as worn out from the battle as the other three.

Instead it turned out the man had a power that purified evil and that coupled with his psychic powers managed to eat away at her controls.  It wasn’t long after she had revived her Shitennou that Jadeite had disappeared on a mission and never returned. The next time he appeared he was fighting against Nephrite. Of course that other Sailor twit had appeared and started helping him.

Beryl supposed it didn’t really matter now. Once Jadeite was under the influence of the demonic aura of Dreadnought it wouldn’t really matter if she lost Zoisite or Kunzite. Jadeite’s power would double if not triple once he held the blade.

Still if Zoisite failed…she would have to insure her own survival. With a flick of her wrist she disappeared in a cloud of black smoke.

Dark Kingdom – Horsemen’s chambers

 

Luna sat atop her special chair in the Horsemen’s ready room. Mamoru and the others were to meet shortly to discuss what to do with the appearance of the Moon Princess. It had been a lucky stroke of events that Ami happened to be monitoring the map when the Princess appeared.

With a sigh Luna glanced at the clock. Once more she was the first one here. She still found herself concerned over Ami’s sudden fascination with their awakening. Was the girl really having second thoughts about the memories that Luna had gifted to Ami.

It left Luna to wonder about the past. Things would have been different if the Wiseman hadn’t awakened her. She almost scoffed at the mere idea of following the Moon Kingdom like Artemis and Minako seemed perfectly happy to do. If she were to admit it, it did hurt her that her companion had left with Minako. The two never seemed comfortable from the start.

_It had felt like she had just gone to sleep. The last thing she remembered was the sudden pain of an arrow piercing her lungs. The sudden explosion of force had sent her body skittering across the floor. Blood was thick in her mouth as she felt it dribble out the side of her cheeks and started to coat her fur. She heard a scream come from nearby._

_Not that she had the energy to open her eyes. In her heart she knew it must have been Artemis. The two had been trying to make their way to the Queen when she was cut down by an invading Youma or possibly by one of the Earthling’s soldiers. It didn’t matter now. She was too tired. The voice of Artemis started to sound further and further away. Everything was hazy and seemed to disappear._

_The next moment though she felt awake...awake but something was wrong. Her memories were jumbled up. Things didn’t make sense. Nothing felt right. She peeked open an eye to find herself right where she had died. In that same exact corridor. The only difference was that before the hallway had been pristine and clean._

_Now the walls were partially caved in and the roof was wide open, exposing the hallway to the lunar winds. Dust and debris had collected in the hall. It had aged the palace, stripped it of its once venerable beauty. Now it looked like a building that had been neglected for years and had fallen into disrepair._

_It was then that she noticed the figure that knelt over her. Purple toned lines of energy slowly pulsed out of the hooded figure that knelt over her. Arthritic hands held a staff between them where the energy seemed to originate from. Luna attempted to push herself up but she found herself too weak to move._

_“Shh…lay still my friend.” The figure whispered in a voice that almost cracked with disuse. The words came out almost broken._

_“What are you doing to me?” Luna responded in a suspicious tone. She didn’t know who this person was. What she could tell was that whatever this figure was doing seemed to be unlocking memories. Memories that felt wrong in some way. They were of a time when the Queen suddenly made a power grab and worked to solidify her rule. Those that were once allies were subjected to near slavery under the rule of Queen Serenity. Her forces gathered to take the other planets one by one._

_“Unlocking your memories, they will feel unnatural at first. Queen Serenity placed powerful blocks on your real memories.” The figure explained in a creaky voice. The purple energy around Luna started to pulsate faster._

_Luna cried out in pain as the memories that had been locked away by the Queen exploded into her mind. It was all becoming clear now. The Queen hadn’t been the victim like she had somehow believed in her heart when she first awoke. The Earthlings had suddenly appeared on the Galaxy stage. Their magic rivaled the Senshi._

_The Queen quickly grew jealous of the Golden Crystal’s power and the sway they started to gain over the other kingdoms. Her plan had been simple. Subjugate the other Kingdoms and then with the Silver Alliance once again united as one, invade Earth with their combined forces. Then she would combine the powers of both Crystals to rule the entire galaxy with an iron fist. The woman was mad with power._

_It had been fortunate she reflected that the Earthen people with the people of the other kingdoms, discovered the Queen’s plan and worked together to invade the Lunar Kingdom and put an end to her reign of terror. Luna’s eyes widened as the memories started to stream across her consciousness faster and faster. The Queen rallied her troops and unwilling subjects in defense of the Moon Kingdom._

_The Earthen people desperate for help to defeat Queen Serenity enlisted the help of a once enemy now Ally. Beryl and her Youma army clove through the civilians like a hot knife through butter. She witnessed the Moon Kingdom’s royal guards fighting back against Earthen soldier and Youma alike. The Lunar army was slowly torn to shreds by their combined might. The Sailor Senshi of the other Kingdom’s created large swathes of destruction that left none standing in their wake._

_In the end it was not enough to stop Queen Serenity. The battle came to a standstill. The great warriors of Earth and the Prince himself could not activate the Golden Crystal. Even Beryl attempted to harness the power only to find herself defeated in front of the great terror that was Queen Serenity. All hope appeared to be lost but then she saw it. Endymion the Prince of Earth managed to spear the Princess of the Moon through the heart. The Queen lost all will to fight. The battle was over. The allied forces of Earth and the Youma had won. The Lunar forces left broken with a leader weeping over the body of her daughter._

_Then it happened. The Queen in one last fit of rage unleashed the Moon Kingdom’s most powerful attack. Lunar Judgment. The massive wave of energy obliterated all that the Queen saw as her enemy. It didn’t matter though. All those fighting for both sides were taken by the wave of energy. Their bodies disappeared in some cases and in others only a crystal shard was left over. Their soul crystal. The expanding cloud of energy continued to expand until it covered the entire Kingdom._

_“You were lucky that I found you before you awoke on your own.” The figure interrupted Luna’s thoughts with a wheezing chuckle._

_“I felt your crystal awakening. The Queen must have wanted you wake up first to find the remaining Senshi and return their memories to them. If you had been allowed to do as she planned, they would find themselves working for the person that had caused their demise to begin with.” The figure rasped out with a harsh rattling breath. It appeared that awakening Luna had taken a lot of out her savior. The energy flow had stopped and the figure had dropped the staff to rest on the ground._

_“How did you know that the Queen had implanted false memories in my mind?” Luna responded suspiciously. The memories in her head made sense now that they were complete but the original memories they overlapped still caused some mental dissonance. She felt like an important mission was imparted to her by the Queen. It was to find the Moon Princess and restore something to her._

_“Your soul crystal had been altered. Your crystal looked much like this one.” For reference the figure quickly produced a crystal from one of the tattered sleeves of the robe the figure wore. It looked much like a standard soul crystal but in the middle of the crystal was a black spot._

_“Altered memories cause the soul crystal to darken. An outside influence of unnatural intent. The Queen died but after killing everyone she wanted to send her daughter’s soul forward to live and reestablish the Moon Kingdom. She had not the concentration to send a single soul forward. To do it she’d have to send the whole lot of you forward.” The figure rasped out._

_“Then why would she alter our memories and if the Princess is still here why not just kill her when she awakens if I awoke back in the Moon Kingdom?” Luna queried._

_“What better way to protect your child from her killers than to get her killers to protect her?” The voice chuckled in a raspy amusement._

_“She wanted the Princess safe so she wiped everyone’s memories away as best she could. She did have the presence of mind to program you and one other to believe in her lies. You would activate the others and start the process of feeding them memories of the past as yours slowly became restored. Of course they were all false so it would turn her enemies into allies. You would die or the Princess and to the Queen it wouldn’t matter as you are all just disposable pawns meant to protect her Princess.” The figure sighed a little before raising an arthritic and trembling hand off the ground and pointed towards Earth._

_“I cannot tell you why you awoke here and the others awoke on Earth but I will use the remaining amount of my energy to send you there. You must find the remaining Senshi and activate them along with the Lord of Death. Then you will have to find the Moon Princess and destroy her.” The figure counseled the black little cat with the odd golden crescent moon shaped insignia still stamped on her forehead._

_The longer her real memories took hold, the more it made sense. The less the memories the Queen implanted about an invasion from Beryl upon the Galaxy made sense. With a nod to the figure, Luna stood unsteadily onto her feet._

_“I will activate the others. I will make sure that the Moon Kingdom never rises again.”_

_“Take this.” The figure said after a moment of thought. From inside the figure’s robes a small garnet shard of stone on a chain just big enough to fit over Luna’s head was tossed to the cat._

_“What’s this?” Luna asked with some trepidation as she experimentally lifted the stone and silver chain necklace up._

_“It will activate the true memories for each of the Senshi. Upon activating them you must channel your powers into the stone and funnel it into them. It will break the false memories. Then you must provide them each with a soul gem. It will insure the Senshi gain back their true powers and cleanse them.” The figure elaborated before producing a small bag of purple gems. The power seemed to swirl as the gems seemed to turn from a light purple to almost black._

_Luna snatched the small bag up and put it away into her subspace pocket. “Where do I start?”_

_“Tokyo…that is where I feel the most power resonating from.” The figure responded back without a moment of hesitation._

_“Just one more question.” Luna queried. At the nod from the figure in the tattered black cloak she continued. “Why are you doing this?”_

_“I was a survivor of that terrible night. I lost everyone...everyone I cared about was wiped away in a single instance. I wanted to get the Queen back for her arrogance. Her disregard for the destruction she caused through her actions and inactions. I’ve had a long time to think on this.” The figure chuckled darkly._

_“Then when I felt your Soul Crystal begin to awaken I realized how I could make her pay.”_

_Luna nodded once. She could respect the feelings this figure had towards the Queen of the Moon. The woman acted for only her own personal gain._

_“What should I call you?”_

_The figure seemed to go silent for a moment before an idea seemed to pop into the figure’s head. It apparently amused the person because a raspy laughter followed._

_“Call me Wiseman. Now go…activate the remaining Senshi before it is too late. Find the Prince of Earth. Remember some may fight back against the memories you give them. You must eliminate them.” Wiseman instructed before the figure snapped its arthritic fingers. A moment later a portal opened up to Tokyo._

_Luna glanced back one last time before jumping through. The figure sat there on the floor of the destroyed palace with the staff still clutched in one trembling liver spotted hand. A moment later she found herself in Tokyo. She had no time to waste. It would be up to her to activate the Senshi and find the Prince._

“Luna!” A voice called out finally called out with enough force to bring Luna out of her memories.

The black coated cat seemed to shake herself awake. She turned her head towards the voice.

A bemused Makoto sat in her seat. Feet up on the table and her arms crossed across her chest in. The girl was clearly amused that she had caught the cat unaware.

Luna glanced about the room as her ears folded onto her head slightly in annoyance. The entire group was at their seats. Ami was hiding a smile behind her computer, Lord Death looked similarly amused, and Rei of course appeared annoyed over the entire situation.

“Welcome back, Luna.” Lord Death chuckled in amusement.

“We were just talking about what to do now that the Princess has made her appearance.” Ami absentmindedly chimed in as she continued working on her minicomputer.

“I say we take over right now! Beryl isn’t equipped to handle this any longer. She’s already lost two of her team members. Send me down, I’ll find the Princess and put her into the ground!” Makoto declared across the table with a confident grin.

“No need to rush in. Let Beryl expend all of her resources and wear them down.” Rei waved off Makoto’s notion with her one hand.

“You’d have us sit around up here twiddling our thumbs for eternity waiting for the right moment.” Makoto groused in annoyance.

“And you’d rather put us all in danger just for a little excitement.” Rei grumbled with a roll of her eyes.

“Luna? Ami? Any thoughts?” Lord Death asked as he sent a bemused glance at his lover. The girl had the brilliant mind of a tactician and sometimes rivaled Ami.  Makoto of course just wanted to go in with both fists swinging, so he wasn’t surprised that she wanted to take the fight to the Moon Princess.

“We need more data. Although her power signature matches, I need to see her in person. If I can analyze her powers, my computer may be able to find a weakness.” Ami chimed in.

“Weakness…pssh. We just keep hittin her till she falls.” Makoto grumbled in annoyance.

“I can consult the fires to see if I can find discern any further hints of the future or where she may appear.” Rei volunteered.

 “Fine…but we need people on the ground to study our opponents. While we’ve got enough information on Jadeite and Minako, we still don’t know much about the Princess’s Guardian. Ami and Makoto, I need you both to go down and start gathering data.”

“Finally some action!” Makoto crowed in excitement as she dropped her feet off the table with a thud.

“Remember this is observation only.” Lord Death stressed with a put upon sigh.

“Yeah, Yeah.” Makoto muttered petulantly as she waved Lord Death’s orders off.

“I’ll keep an eye on her.” Ami assured Lord Death.

“Thank you Ami. At least I can count on one of you to be responsible.” Lord Death muttered as he watched Makoto causally flip him off at his comment. Sometimes he wondered if he should just kill Beryl and take some of the Shitennou. Kunzite at least seemed to listen to orders. Although Makoto had informed him that he was staging a coup. So perhaps he should just be thankful for what he had. At least the girls despite their differences were happy to work together with each other.  

“So you want us to take Luna with us so you and Rei can have some uninterrupted time together.” Makoto suggested with a waggle of her eyebrows.

“You’re so crass!” Rei interjected. A dark blush appeared on Rei’s cheeks at Makoto’s insinuation about Lord Death’s true plan for sending Makoto and Ami down to Earth.

“Doesn’t make it less true.” Makoto let out a deep belly laugh as she pulled herself up from the table while pulling Ami up with her by the arm.

“Come on Ami, better leave the love birds alone.”

Ami shot the two an apologetic smile as she was pulled out of the chambers by Makoto.

“She’ll never change will she?” Lord Death mused.

“Unfortunately not.” Luna responded with a put upon sigh.

“I’m going to go consult the great fire, love, don’t stay up too late.” Rei said as she briefly cupped his chin before getting up and walking towards the door. She made sure to sashay her hips as she walked through the door.

“She’s going to be the death of me.” Lord Death said with a sigh before he pushed himself up from the table and headed after the raven haired goddess.

Luna shook her head. A bemused expression came across her face at how the entire situation played out. Looking out or the Horsemen certainly never ceased to keep her on her toes. She took in the empty chambers and just hoped that they’d all return safely to the chambers.

It was Makoto that worried her the most. While Ami would be down on Earth, she was less likely to rush into a situation without studying it first. The loss of Minako and Artemis had already proven that they were all susceptible to the Queen’s lies. Beryl’s loss of a second Shitennou was another reminder of how vulnerable they all were.

It was with the fear of losing another to the Moon’s forces that Luna decided to contact the Wiseman. If there was a way to eliminate the Moon Princess, Wiseman would know. If she could find a way to bring Minako and Artemis back, well she wouldn’t be above selling her soul to the devil himself.

With a final look at the chambers, Luna padded her way out.

 

Earth:

Usagi lay on her bed staring at the ceiling. It had been three long boring weeks. Three long boring weeks grounded. Her mom hadn’t taken kindly to her running off and pulling a disappearing act during the attack at the track by Zoisite’s ice golems. The fact that she didn’t really have a good excuse…at least none that her mother would believe left her out of luck.

Not that she would have had anything to do anyway. Jadeite had stopped talking to her after what she did to Nephrite. Like it was even her fault that her powers had somehow turned Nephrite crazy. If anything he was to blame. Tousle headed idiot thought she should just somehow magically know how to use her powers.

Really, he knew that she had no clue what she was doing. To make it worse Minako wasn’t able to make it over due to the amount of attacks Zoisite had been launching. The only information she got was from Artemis and as much as she loved the cat…he got annoying fast.

All it ever was with Artemis was doom and gloom. Half the time he seemed to be convinced that this was it and Minako wouldn’t return. If she was a psychologist she may look into prescribing some Prozac to the cat. He really seemed despondent lately. Then again she would too if all she had for company was Jadeite.

A knock at her door a moment later roused her from her thoughts. She lazily turned her head towards the door in time to watch her mom come in.

“Really Usagi…you could at least be doing something productive like studying. I know you’ve been doing better in school finally but you’ve been doing nothing but staring at the ceiling or talking to that silly white cat that seems to come to your window every night.” Ikuko said with a sigh as she surveyed her daughter’s room. It was even more of a wreck than it normally was. She was really becoming worried that the girl was legitimately depressed.

“Hm…” Usagi muttered in a noncommittal tone.

“You know Naru called and asked to see if you could come out for a lunch date with her. Seems she got a new boyfriend while you were grounded and she wants you to meet him.” Ikuko said in a sing song tone in an attempt to get a response out of her daughter.

“Well not like I can since I’m grounded.” Usagi groused from her bed. With an exaggerated sigh she flipped onto her back again and continued to stare at the ceiling. 

“So I take it you don’t want me to release you from your prison sentence then?” Ikuko responded with a small smirk across her face. She watched in amusement as Usagi suddenly sat straight up. Perhaps she should have toyed with her a little longer and really drawn out the reveal. Luckily with her daughter she wouldn’t have to wait too long before the girl got herself in trouble again. Although to be honest it was becoming a rarer occurrence after Jadeite had come into her life.

“You really mean it?” Usagi practically yelled as she flounced off of the bed with a newfound energy in her step and took her mother into a hug that bordered on strangulation. She kind of forgot that even without her transformation in effect she was still stronger than the average human.

“Can’t breathe!” Ikuko managed to gasp out as her daughter squeezed her around her diaphragm. When did Usagi get this strong? She wondered momentarily before she started to pay Usagi on the shoulder in an attempt to get her attention.

You really mean it though?” Usagi asked with a suspicious glance. There were few times her mom didn’t do something without a reason.

“Well, I guess, I just miss seeing Jadeite when he comes over. So maybe if you go out and meet Naru you may run into him and invite him over.” Ikuko responded with a smile that caused Usagi to drop her head in defeat. The navy haired woman smirked in amusement at her daughter’s response. She wondered when the poor girl would admit that she had a thing for her tutor.

It wasn’t like she missed the furtive looks that Jadeite sent her daughter. When he didn’t think anyone was looking, the young man would look at Usagi and that small amused smile would cross his lips. The two of them thought they were so coy. For Ikuko though, the two may as well have been waving giant banners declaring their interest for each other.

“Glad to see that Jadeite is the favorite of this family.” Usagi declared with a dramatic fake swoon back onto her bed the moment she released her mother from the bear hug she had held her in.

“Oh Usa, don’t be so dramatic. It’s not like that at all.” Ikuko responded with a roll of her eyes at her daughter’s antics.

“Certainly sounds like it.” Usagi muttered petulantly from the bed.

“He’s just my favorite almost son-in-law!” Ikuko declared with a victorious smirk. Usagi practically wailed in embarrassment at her mother’s declaration.

“No troublemaker is going to marry my daughter, I don’t care what kind of genius he is!” Usagi’s father declared from the bottom of the stairs. The man obviously had heard Ikuko’s last declaration.

“My daughter can marry who ever she wants! And a certain husband of mine better not chase my future son in law away if he doesn’t want to be permanently relocated to the sofa!” Ikuko leaned out of Usagi’s door and yelled down the hall in an overly sweet voice. It was her warning tone and one step away from certain doom for anyone that dared tread further on the topic.

“Any man that wants my daughter’s hand in marriage will have to defeat me in hand to hand combat first!” Kenji boldly declared from the bottom of the stairs. Clearly he was used to provoking his beautiful wife. It was why they were married for so long. They kept the spark going with making up after these types of frivolous fights.

“You will not be participating in any fights with men thirty years your junior!” Ikuko called back in a huff down the stairs.

“I’ll fight whoever I want! They didn’t call me the Tsukino Terror for nothing!” Kenji declared loudly.

“They called you that because you used to crash into everything with your car, there’s a reason I drive the new car dear!” Ikuko sighed in exasperation with a roll of her eyes.

“Mom, please promise me that Dad won’t try to fight any of my friends.” Usagi was still laying on her bed only now her hands were covering her face in embarrassment. It was amazing how the two of them managed to keep picking on each other and still be together. It was also even worse when the two were in public. It was as if they had complete disregard for their surroundings when they started going at it.

“You know your father. Sometimes I don’t think he’ll rest until he drives me to a mental break down.” Ikuko sighed as she rubbed her temple with her left hand. The man really had it coming tonight.

“Why do you two fight so much anyway? Most normal people would get a divorce by now…” Usagi ventured carefully. She had always wondered how the two were still together and this most recent argument was tame compared to some of the fights they had, had in the past.

Ikuko chuckled a little. She wondered how much Usagi would blush at her answer. “You call it fighting. Your father and I call it foreplay.” A wicked smirk crossed her face at her daughter’s large doe eyes going wide.

“Just so you know, Sammy is over at a friend’s house. So I suggest you vamoose if you don’t want to hear things your sensitive little ears can’t handle.”

“MOTHER!” Usagi wailed as her face turned bright red.

Ikuko laughed at the look on her daughter’s face. It was most amusing to wind her daughter up.

“I knew there was a reason you wanted to release me.” Usagi glared at her mother as she started to throw her shoes on. A renewed sense of purpose entering her step now that she knew what was going to happen the moment she stepped out the door.

“Well not everything revolves around only your needs and wants.” Ikuko smiled as she stepped out the door. Right before she left though she ducked her head back in and gave Usagi a pointed look.

“Make sure you’re out for the next few hours! Your father has a lot of making up to do and I don’t expect to be quick!” Ikuko laughed as Usagi once more managed to choke out a strangled sounding “Mother!” as the young girl was jumping around trying to get her shoes on and purse in order.

It was minutes later that a red faced Usagi was closing the front door of her house. The sounds of her mother’s laughter drove Usagi down the street to go meet Naru. She didn’t even know where she was meeting Naru now that she thought about it. With a flip of her phone, she was calling Naru hoping to escape the nightmare she had just left behind.

 

Shinjuku Gyoen Park – Earth

 

“Are you sure that stupid cat was right? I don’t see any signs of Zoisite around here.” Jadeite groused to Minako as he surveyed the area. Stupid cat probably misread the data and sent them on a wild goose chase. Why’d he even respond when Minako had called? As usual it ended up being a pain in the neck for him. This is why he hated that cat.

“Hey don’t blame me! You’re the one that wanted to go running after him the moment you heard he was out here!” Minako responded crossly.

“No…I said that we should probably check into it. For all we know the icy prick was just surveying the area. In no way did I say I wanted to go out to play hide and go seek with Zoisite.” Jadeite responded with a sigh. Why did Minako always twist his words…or not listen to him at all.

“When are you going to stop being such a stick in the water?” Minako asked while putting her hands on her hips and glaring at the stubborn jackass.

“Ever since your fight with Usagi you’ve been such a jerk. Why don’t you just admit you were a jerk and overreacted. It isn’t like it was her fault or anything. She doesn’t even know half of her powers and yet you rag on her for every single mistake she makes. Cut her some slack why dontcha?”

“Well I didn’t see her turn one of your Senshi into a hulking psychopath that somehow believes the Moon Kingdom is against him. So once she screws up with one of your girls, you let me know how forgiving you’re feeling.” Jadeite snidely responded.

“Well maybe if you actually helped train her instead of ignoring her and just telling her to figure it out, we wouldn’t be in this mess to begin with.” Minako bit back with a huff.

“Oh my my my…you two certainly fight like an old married couple. Mind if I settle the argument for you…how about…who ever I dispose of first loses the argument!” Zoisite suggested with a smirk as he jumped down from a tree he had been observing the two in.  It was almost pitiful that he managed to avoid detection for so long. In fact if he hadn’t made his presence known, he’d dare say he could have gotten the jump on them.

Of course the problem was that he needed the two separated if his plan was to work. Speaking of which, he raised both of his hands up and let energy build up in both of his hands. Miniature ice replicas of himself slowly started to build up in his palms. Corresponding life size figures started to appear at either side of him.

A moment later four more Zoisite’s stood there by the original. All wore the same snide looks across their face.

“Oh good now I can mess up your face five different ways…of course what does one do when your face is already such a wreck. Ah the artist’s dilemma.” Jadeite faux mused as he slowly drew his black katana out of the flames between his hands.

“Just shut up and help me get rid of those stupid ice clones of his.” Minako yelled as she withdrew her golden chain from around her waist.

“Yeah yeah…don’t forget they have the tendency to explode.” Jadeite reminded Minako before the two broke in opposite directions to keep the clones from encircling them.

Two of the clones immediately leapt away after Minako. Their mission was to slowly move the girl far enough away that she’d be unable to assist Jadeite.

Jadeite rushed in with a large sweeping swing of his blade in an attempt to end the fight before it even began. The flaming sword was inches from Zoisite’s throat when an icy rapier met his blade and parried it off to the side. A second rapier knocked the blade out of Jadeite’s hand.

“Flame Wave!” Jadeite cried out as he swept his arm out towards one of the clone. A moment later a large billowing wave of fire roared out from the small flame that had appeared on his arm. The fire hungrily ate the oxygen as it sped towards one of the icy clones. The clone had to put up an ice shield to keep from melting from the intense heat.

“Dammit!” Jadeite yelled when he suddenly was bear hugged from behind by the other clone that he had missed with his last attack. He felt a wave of heat built up before the clone self-destructed. With a scream Jadeite was launched forward by the close proximity explosion. The power of the blast caused him to almost lose consciousness.

A moment later he landed several yards away. His body felt limp from the concussive blast and just trying to push himself up was taking every ounce of his energy. The blast had completely shredded his back and uniform. The blood was running freely from the fresh wounds causing him to lose even more strength.

Jadeite felt his vision start to lose focus. Through complete will power alone he reached around for his sword, completely forgetting that it had been knocked out of his hands earlier. Finally he felt his hand grip something. It wasn’t his sword but it’d have to do.

The moment his hand fully locked around the white blade he felt a surge of power. A smirk came to his lips. It was like tapping into a live wire. The wounds on his back slowly started to seal as his white uniform started to knit itself back together. The pain of the blast slowly started to fade away as his power was restored.

He glanced down at the blade in his hand. It wasn’t his normal black katana. In fact it was white in nature. A silver sheen coming off the edge of the blade but other than that is was completely white. This was certainly new…where the hell did this blade come from?

It was a moment later that Jadeite felt a sudden pulse from the sword. He fell back to the ground in pain. A dark aura was coming from the sword. It slowly started to spread up his arm. When he attempted to drop the blade he found his fingers refused to respond.

“What the hell is happening?” Jadeite yelled as he once again tried to get his fingers to respond. Instead he felt a black slimy power starting to crawl up his arm. As it went he found that he couldn’t feel the flow of his fire. With a push of his flames he attempted to stop the black sticky feeling from crawling up his arm to no avail.

“Why Jadeite…are you feeling weak? Feeling like you just can’t let go?” Zoisite chuckled in amusement.

Jadeite glanced up to see Zoisite standing before him. With a scream he attempted to swing the blade at Zoisite. While he couldn’t feel his hand or most of his forearm he could still move his shoulder and elbow.

“Oh so close!” Zoisite mocked as he leaned back enough to avoid the clumsy attack.

“Well Jadeite, color me impressed, you’re putting up quite the fight. Beryl assumed that you’d have given in within the first minute of touching the blade but here you are fighting the good fight!”

“I’ll never work for that bitch!” Jadeite screamed in denial as he felt the black power slowly making progress up his arm and towards his heart. Every flame he sent towards the black sludge only ended up sputtering out against the blade’s power.

“You think you have a choice? Beryl cooked this sword up for you special.” Zoisite chuckled in amusement.

“Just give in…stop fighting it. It’ll only cause you more pain.”

“Fucking prick!” Jadeite growled as he lunged once more at Zoisite. The power had made it up to his shoulder. He was waving the sword aimlessly but he was intent on ending the icy bastard.

“Oh dear…such a temper.” Zoisite chuckled mirthlessly. Honestly he wasn’t exactly onboard with bringing Jadeite back to their side but it was the she-bitches wishes.

 

Clover Café – Earth

 

  
Usagi blinked in confusion. She must have been struck dumb, deaf, and blind. She was fairly certain that Naru had just introduced Nephrite as her boyfriend…but that couldn’t be right. The borderline sociopath seemed to read her thoughts because the giant of a man shot her a smirk. One of her eyebrows started to twitch.

“Usagi, such a pleasure to meet you again.” Nephrite responded with a short bow that had Naru gushing all over him and his gentlemanly manners. The fact that it seemed to be having the opposite effect on Usagi was just perfect. The little blonde terror was quietly shredding the napkin in her hand into tiny pieces.

“Oh! I didn’t realize you two already knew each other.” Naru continued with a smile as she sat down in the seat that Nephrite had pulled out for her.

“You could say that.” Usagi mumbled as she continued to glare at the man that took the liberty of sitting next to her best friend. What in the world was this creep doing anyway? Dating her best friend and moonlighting as a homicidal killer.

“Actually we share some of the same friends. Her friend Jadeite in particular.” Nephrite responded with a small smirk directed right back at Usagi.

“Oh wow!” Naru gushed with a mega-watt smile coming over her face. “We should go on a double date sometime. Usagi and Jadeite are dating. It’d be so much fun!”

“Oh really?” Nephrite quirked an eyebrow.

“We’re not dating, I don’t have any feelings for that flame brained idiot.” Usagi cut in quickly but not before a slight blush rose to her cheeks. There most certainly was nothing going on in fact. Why did people keep insinuating that they had something going on with each other?

“She’s just in denial.” Naru waved off Usagi’s outburst with a casual shrug of her shoulders. “In fact they’ve had a thing since they first met.”

“Really…you two come from such opposite worlds, I’m surprised something like that could work out.” Nephrite made sure to empathize ‘worlds’ as he spoke. A knowing smile plastered across his face. Who’d have thought that Jadeite would even look twice at a Moon slag like the girl in front of him. It was almost sickening.

“Nothing is going on.” Usagi responded with a huff before crossing her arms. She glared at Nephrite one final time before taking a more active interest in Naru.

“So how did you two meet?”

“It was the craziest thing.” Naru took over, the girl continued on ignoring the mounting tension she could feel between her date and her best friend.

“Just last week I was running out to get some dinner for my mom. Suddenly this giant ice creature came out of nowhere and almost took my head off. Then Neph came out of nowhere and saved me! He was so dashing in that black uniform. It must have been scared of him because it disappeared right after he saved me. Then he walked me home and everything.” Naru finished with a shy smile directed at her savior.

“How convenient.” Usagi responded dryly before she let out a muffled shriek from a kick in the shin. She glared at Naru as she reached down to rub the affected area.

“My foot must have slipped.” Naru grinned before she leaned over to Nephrite and planted a kiss on the giant of a man’s cheek. He had obliged the slip of a girl and had leaned down so she could actually do so in the first place.

“So Nephrite…what do you do? In High School? College? Working?” Usagi invasively probed, completely unconcerned with what Nephrite or Naru thought of her. He was up to something and she didn’t like it. It wasn’t like she could transform right here in front of Naru. Not to mention the hulking lug had yet to make a move. She had to admit, begrudgingly, that he was being fairly cordial considering last time he had almost killed her.

“I actually am working right now for a flower shop, you may know it, Fiona’s Garden. I feel a connection to the Earth, I suppose you could say I just resonate with the planet.” Nephrite responded without missing a beat.

“He’s so wonderful, he makes the most beautiful arrangements.” Naru chimed in.

“Yep, he’s just perfect.” Usagi responded in a droll tone. She could only imagine the arrangement this jerk would make. It’d be like putting Jadeite in charge of a suicide prevention hotline.

“You know, maybe you wouldn’t be so jealous if you’d just admit you like Jadeite.” Naru responded with a smirk. When all else failed, cause Usagi to back down by harassing her about Jadeite.

A large explosion outside cut off whatever Usagi’s response would be. A moment later the front windows of the café burst inwards as Sailor Venus came flying through the window surrounded in a ball of fire. The blast sent molten pieces of glass flying through the store. The customers and staff inside screamed as they ducked to avoid being peppered by the glass or the flying girl for that matter.

A few unfortunate people weren’t fast enough and soon after the initial blast there were moans of pain from all across the café. A moment later the fire alarms went off from the smoke rising up and the sprinklers went off.

Usagi gasped as she recognized Minako or at this point Sailor Venus laying in the rubble and pieces of molten glass. What the hell happened? She glanced over to see Nephrite shielding Naru. At least the giant lug was keeping her safe. He may not be someone she’d ever trust but Naru seemed to be in good hands for now.

In an attempt to get to Sailor Venus, Usagi found herself scrambling over the rubble. Usagi came to a skittering stop by Minako and placed her hand on the girls shoulder and started to shake her friend. The blast must have hit her point blank. Every part of her uniform was covered in black and brown burns. Just like last time at the track, even Minako’s hair was burned in places.

“Sailor Venus, what happened?”

“Un…Jadeite…” Minako mumbled as she slowly came to. Her vision came back into focus as she took in the scene before her. The water from the sprinklers caused her to blink rapidly which helped remove the white dots floating through her vision. It took her a moment but she realized it was Usagi that was shaking her.

“Venus, Venus, I need you to tell me what happened?” Usagi attempted to get the girl to concentrate enough to tell her what was going on. Behind her she could hear the screams of the other people still in the café as they attempted to get themselves out of harm’s way.  

“Jadeite…he’s not right. Zoisite…he tricked him.” Minako moaned as she attempted to pull herself up. It only ended up with the girl falling back to the ground in a limp pile.

“Venus…come on out Princess, I just want to put you out of your misery.” Jadeite chuckled as he climbed into the café through one of the blown out full length windows that Minako had gone through. Jadeite held a white katana in his right hand. The black katana he normally wielded was conspicuously absent.

“What the hell Jadeite?” Usagi yelled out in confusion. She glanced down at poor Minako but there wasn’t anything she could do for her at the moment. To make it even worse she was stuck here in this café full of people. There would be no way to transform. Not unless she wanted everyone knowing who that she was the Lunar Ronin…well to be honest it wasn’t exactly like she was a household name.

“Oh Usa…you’re here…well this’ll make everything so much easier won’t it? Kill two birds with one stone.” Jadeite chuckled mirthlessly as he leveled his blade at the two.

“What are you talking about? We’re on the same side!” Usagi screamed at him in an attempt to get it through his head that the two of them weren’t enemies. It didn’t seem to work, Jadeite was quickly advancing on the two of them.

“You think I care about any of you? I’ll destroy you all and murder the Moon Princess!” Jadeite yelled as he lunged forward. In another moment he would run Minako and Usagi through in one fatal blow. The white sword started to glow as it pulsed with power. It hungered for their blood and life. He could just tell. Some dark sick and twisted part of him desired for his blade to lash out and taste their blood, to split them down the middle and pierce their throats.

Usagi closed her eyes as she felt the blade coming down on the two of them. It was the unexpected sound of metal on metal that caused Usagi to open her eyes. Standing in-between Jadeite and the two girls was a tall lean man. At least that was the best description she could get of him. In fact he almost resembled Zoisite. They had the same golden red hair tied back in a ponytail. Of course he was taller than the short Shitennou. In fact he was almost as tall as that hulking lug Nephrite.

He stood in some kind of Ren faire knight get up. As if she had room to talk. The full suit of armor covered his entire body from head to toe. The armor was a jade green hue. A banner was proudly displayed on his chest in a silver hue, in the form of a three pointed star. Every joint ended in a sharp spike with a silver gleam at the edge. To complete the outfit he wore a knee length cape, which started from behind his right shoulder and wrapped around his back, to stop in front of his left shoulder. While the outside of the cape matched most of his get up, a jade green color, the underside matched the three pointed star, a silver color.

Usagi stared in disbelief, the only thing missing was a helmet. Not that it really mattered since he wore a visor over his eyes. The visor appeared to be a shade of dark green since she couldn’t really determine any eye color.

The grinding sound of metal on metal finally tore her attention away from the tall man to see that he had blocked Jadeite’s blade with a jade green blade of his own.

With a burst of power Jordan managed to break the stalemate he had with Jadeite and push the Eastern Shitennou back, breaking his guard. He took a moment to look back and take in Usagi’s dumb struck expression.

“Well don’t stand there gapping at me like a fish. Hurry up and transform.” Jordan growled in annoyance. Seriously was she waiting for an invitation to defend herself from a threat?

“Um…how did you know?” Usagi started.

“I can get a vague read on the future you stupid twit, I know enough to know exactly who you are, now hurry up and transform so I can stop worrying about protecting your useless ass.” He responded with a roll of his eyes.

“Hey! We already have one asshole in the group, spot’s taken!” Usagi declared hotly as she grabbed her small sword pendent. She stopped as she realized that people were still watching. It was as if he could read her thoughts.

“Your powers cause people to blank out as to who you were when you transform. Do you think we’re some kind of sad Superman that needs to run into a phone booth every time we need to transform? Well news flash, phone booths are obsolete. So unless you make a habit of carrying one around with you at all times…hurry up and transform. Geezus you are freaking useless.” Jordan grumbled in annoyance as he blocked another one of Jadeite’s attacks.

This was becoming such a pain in the ass. All he wanted to do was find the Moon Princess, get the Silver Crystal and heal his sister. Was it too much to ask that the Senshi could take care of themselves for a little while or did he have to solve every single problem known to man.

“I’m not useless and who the hell are you anyway!” Usagi screamed in annoyance she once more grabbed her pendent.

“The Phaeton Knight...Blinky” The tall man groused as he swung the jade crystal blade around in a wide arc to drive Jadeite back.

“Did you just call me Blinky!?” Usagi half accused half asked as she called out her transformation phrase.

 

A/N: And this is where we end. Thanks again to Ginsan for loaning Jordan out! I’ve got a poll up for what you guys are interesting in hearing about. I hope I answered some questions for everyone regarding the past. I know I didn’t cover Jadeite and Minako rebelling but I hope it was a little more helpful.

Thanks again for reading and if you have any questions please let me know. I’ll do my best to answer them or look into writing them into the story when I’m able to. If you see any grammatical errors let me know. I’m running solo so my grammar isn’t exactly a thing of beauty.

Once again I appreciate every review I get. So thank you again Lucyole, Petites Sorcieres, Ashes, Vchanny, Ginsan, Whiteinfinity21, catspirit, and Loveinthebattlefield. The reviews inspired me to get this chapter out faster than normal.


	9. Tactics

A/N: Sorry this chapter was a pain to write. I wrote a fight scene with Jadeite and Zoisite going crazy house on Minako and Usagi but I really hated the light it put Jadeite in. Soooo since I don’t want you to all hate Jadeite, I scrapped it. I also didn’t realize how hard it would be to write a chapter without Jadeite’s banter with Usagi. For those hoping for a quick return of Jadeite, you’re probably going to be in luck. I can probably do Jadeite-less for another chapter max. Chapters may slow up a little bit. I am going to try to start rotating again between my four active stories.

 

Chapter 9: Tactics

“We can’t just leave those people down there.” Usagi half accused as she begrudgingly followed the Phaeton Knight into the sky and back towards a building behind them. Her armor was still smoldering in some places from the attacks that got through from Jadeite.

“Well you feel free if you want to throw your life away, Blinky. I for one have better things to do than die tonight.” Jordan responded bitterly as he followed the movements of the enemies below to make sure they weren’t following. He also showed signs of battle damage. Despite his immense power he had been handicapped by protecting Venus and helping Usagi. If he’d been just a little earlier he may have been able to stop Jadeite from turning. With a grunt he landed a little unbalance with Minako over his shoulder.

“I vote for life!” Minako put in with a groan as she attempted to pull herself up from lying over Jordan’s shoulder. Out of the three she was probably the worst off. While the others showed signs of battle they hadn’t gotten the beat down she had endured.

Minako’s entire body was covered in burns and tears in her uniform’s bodice. While the other two had entered the fray fairly fresh, Minako had been the one that Jadeite and Zoisite had been chasing. The poor girl was still pretty out of it really.

“Well I vote for helping save people!” Usagi responded with a snort of annoyance. While she paid it lip service, she knew deep down that if she were to go down there alone she’d die. Realistically she knew none of them were in any condition to fight anymore. Not after those cops went crazy and started attacking her. It was weird they seemed to be completely focused on killing her.

“You can’t save everyone, the sooner you learn that, the better.” Jordan responded, a sneer sneaking its way across his face.

“It doesn’t mean we can’t try!” Usagi responded with a glare. Really who was this jerk? Did he have no compassion for the people caught in the crossfire? Who knew if the police would stop Jadeite and Zoisite, or if the pair that had come after her wouldn’t just start targeting innocent people.

“You’re so god damn naïve, it pisses me off. This isn’t some fucking happy fairy tale where everyone lives. Sometimes you have to let a few people die so you can continue on and protect the remainder of the population.” The Phaeton Knight responded with a hint of malice creeping into his voice.

Usagi was taken aback by the words that this man was speaking. It almost sounded like it was coming from personal experience. That couldn’t be right…he didn’t look much older than her. Could he have really been put through something that terrible?

“I still don’t like it.” Usagi ventured in a slightly petulant tone as she looked over the edge of the building to see if she could see what was going on. She saw ambulances pulling up to the scene and people being put onto stretchers. She spotted at least two body bags being zippered up. It had been her fault. If she was just stronger…

“Nothing you could have done.” Jordan responded in a blasé tone as if he knew exactly what she was thinking.

“Of course there was! I could have stayed down there and continued fighting! I could have saved those people. I swore…I swore I’d never run. Not after what I saw the last time Zoisite attacked. I’ve got a responsibility to protect everyone that can’t protect themselves.” Usagi responded hotly. The fact he seemed so nonchalant about people dying was pissing her off.

“Like I said Blinky, you’d have just gotten yourself killed and then the Dark Kingdom would run around unchecked killing even more people. You have to know when to run to fight another day. Sometimes it’s all you can do.” Jordan responded with a hint of compassion entering into his voice. It only seemed to stay a moment.

“Of course if you’re going to make the ultimate sacrifice, make sure it’s worth it. I don’t want to see you in the news bleeding out because you tripped over your own sword.”

“Hey!” Usagi responded with a growl.

“You just seem the type.” Jordan shrugged with little concern.

“You’re such a freakin jerk.” Usagi grumbled as she crossed her arms over her chest in a huff. “Just when I thought you were gonna be nice.”

“Not my problem, I don’t concern myself with your wants and needs. I concern myself with what needs doing and unfortunately I have a lot of work to do and a lot of messes to clean up.” Jordan responded with a roll of his eyes. 

“So why are you the Phaeton Knight again? Shouldn’t that imply some kind of duty to protect or something?” Usagi challenged him with a raised eyebrow.

“You realize that moral code was put in place to try and keep knights from raping and pillaging everything in England right? Geez…study history much? Knights were never exactly the paradigm of valor that fairy tales would have you believe.” Jordan responded with a roll of his eyes.

“How comforting.” Usagi commented dryly. Great she ended up with the one Knight that clearly studied his history and didn’t seem to have an issue with raping and pillaging.

“I aim to please.” Jordan drawled before he reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He tapped a command or two before he glanced up to Usagi. “If you need me, call me.”

“How? You didn’t give me your number. Unless you discovered my latent mind reading abilities and juggling skills.” Usagi deadpanned.

“Unlike you, some of us know how to use this amazing thing called technology. Just don’t think too hard Blinky, your brain may fry from the effort.” Jordan responded with a roll of his eyes. 

 “Can you get Bubbles somewhere safe from here?” Jordan cut in before Usagi could respond.

“Uh yeah…I guess.” Usagi asked in confusion. Honestly she was caught a little flat footed by the sudden change in topic.  

“Great!” Jordan responded with a grin before he dropped Venus onto the roof top with no real care. After poking her with his foot he started to head off towards the edge of the rooftop. He glanced back down at the remains of the café. It had turned into a shit show and fast. One moment it was two on two. Then Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune…at least the reborn versions of them had entered the fray. They had both gone crazy and targeted Blinky.

“Are you just leaving us here?” Usagi asked incredulously. Not that she couldn’t help Minako or get her back to her apartment, but she was still used to Jadeite being around. It almost felt a little odd.

“I’m not a babysitter.” Jordan responded with a roll of his eyes as he looked back over his shoulder. “I’ve got some things to look into.” He added vaguely before he leaped down off the building leaving Usagi alone with a barely conscious Minako.

 “Well guess that answers that.” Usagi sighed in annoyance as she peeked over the edge of the building again. It appeared that it was over. Jadeite and Zoisite must have retreated. She could only hope that Nephrite had gotten Molly out of the area. Since he hadn’t put in an appearance as the Storm King she could only assume he had gotten her to safety.

“We’ve gotta work on you getting your ass kicked a little less Minako.” Usagi grumbled as she hefted the girl onto her shoulder before she took off towards Minako’s apartment. There was no way bringing an unconscious girl back to her house wouldn’t raise a few questions from her mother. She also hoped she didn’t run into that jerk again. There was no way she was dealing with second coming of Jadeite.

 

Tokyo Police Station –

 

“What in all hell happened out there?” Kent growled as he leaned in closer to the two. On one hand he was happy to finally see Haruka a little ashamed but on the other hand he could tell that Michiru wasn’t happy about what had happened. The teal haired woman was subconsciously leaning into her girlfriend.

“I don’t know…” Haruka half whispered as she attempted to look anywhere but directly at her commanding officer. In any other instance she’d make some kind of smart ass remark but this wasn’t the time.

Michiru glanced over at Haruka before she gently squeezed her girlfriend’s hand. “It…it just…when we saw the girl in the armor…something came over us both. It was like some kind of need…no more like a command.”

“A command to do what?” Kent could venture a guess but he wanted to hear it from the two of them. If he was right, well he’d kill the bastard. Nothing Tomoe could do would stop him from taking the crazy bastard down.

“To kill her…I couldn’t stop my sword from swinging. No matter how much I tried to fight back. It was a compulsion.” Haruka muttered as she stared over Kent’s head in an effort to avoid meeting the man’s eyes. She was already disappointed enough in herself, she didn’t need to see the disappointment in his eyes either.

“I couldn’t stop myself. I couldn’t stop the power.” Michiru half whispered before she looked up to see Kent staring at the two of them not in disappointment but in sympathy for their predicament.

“You realize I’ll have to put you both on desk duty until we figure out what happened.” He left it unsaid that he’d be bringing Tomoe up in front of the board. There was no way they’d allow this to stand. If Tomoe’s creation caused this kind of reaction he’d do whatever he could to shut it down.

Right before either Haruka or Michiru could respond the door to the small office opened with a creak. It opened to reveal Tomoe standing there with a smile on his face. “I was just walking by and I heard the most disturbing thing…did you actually tell them they’d be put on desk duty?”

“This doesn’t concern you Tomoe, this is my decision and if you think you can supersede me after I put in my report of what happened in the field, you’ve got another thing coming.”  Kent responded, a hint of steel entering his tone. He was doing everything he could to hold back from strangling the slimy bastard.

“Oh but it does.” Tomoe responded with a sympathetic smile as he absently reached into his lab coat. “You see these two are now under my command. You see after the little incident they decided that you’re clearly incapable of commanding such a complex unit.”

“Very disappointing.” Tomoe clucked in a disapproving tone.

“Bastard! What the hell did you do to us?” Haruka growled as she jumped up and moved towards Tomoe her fist raised and ready to come down like a hammer in his face.

“Foolish child!” Tomoe growled as he quickly snapped his fingers. The sound stopped Haruka in her tracks while Michiru froze in her seat, her hand half way towards reaching out for Haruka. 

“Now that’s more like it.” Tomoe grinned as he dropped his hand back into his lab coat completely unconcerned that Kent was getting up from his seat. The man’s face looked like a thunder cloud and while most would find it threatening, he found it quaint. Did he really think he’d be intimidated by such an apish display?

“What the hell are you doing to my people?” Kent roared as he moved towards Tomoe. He’d kill the bastard!

“Sergeant Gavin Kent! Stand Down!” A broken sounding voice called out behind Professor Tomoe.

Kent slowed his forward motion as his brain finally caught up to the command. He came to a halt as he glared at the man that had appeared behind Tomoe. It was the head of the Scientific Development Team that Tomoe fell under, Wiseman.

“Hn…” Kent muttered as he stared between the two. Tomoe of course had a giant grin on his face while Wiseman was hidden away behind that bedamned cloak of his. It was said that Wiseman was completely paranoid but a genius. Most of the advancements within the Tokyo Police Department had been due to Wiseman.

“These two are officially under the jurisdiction of the SDT. After the last fight, it is clear that the Counter-Terrorism Unit doesn’t have the skill set to handle such special personnel.” Wiseman spoke up as the cloaked figure gestured for Tomoe to continue with his previous action.

“You see this is coming down directly from the Superintendent General.” Tomoe chuckled as he withdrew the order and stuck the piece of paper out towards Kent.

Kent wordlessly took the piece of paper. It didn’t take long to see that the order was signed. Haruka and Michiru were being reassigned to the SDT under a newly formed branch, some sort of anti-invasion unit. It was to operate completely outside of the regular jurisdiction. Clearly it was in response to the last few incidents that Wiseman was able to convince the board to allow him to reassign Haruka and Michiru.

“Satisfied?” Tomoe smirked as he pushed up the frames of his glasses again. It was so sweet seeing Kent completely lose. There was no recourse now. The two would fall under their jurisdiction and he could continue his experiments. Then of course he could continue with his true plan.

“Of course not you bastard, you’ve turned my people into a walking science experiment for your own amusement.” Kent growled out as he absently crumbled the piece of paper in his hand.

“Then please appeal to the board.” Wiseman croaked out. “Of course there is a second option…”

“What?” Tomoe cried out in surprise. Would Wiseman even offer that as an option? What could Wiseman even be playing at by even tempting the fool with such an option.

“Go on.” Kent responded as he glanced at the frozen women that had been under his command up until a moment ago.

“While you don’t have the internal power to go through the process that these two went through, I will need a competent field commander. Of course you will need to answer only to me. You must follow my every command without question. There is a threat to this world, a princess from the Moon that would stomp our world under her heel if given the chance. The Senshi Huntress program was created to stop that eventuality, every person under our command must be ready to eliminate the threat of the Moon. ” Wiseman offered to Kent.

Kent glanced over at Haruka and Michiru. Those two were still completely frozen. Could he really leave the two of them to Tomoe and Wiseman with no back up? It was clear that Tomoe and possibly Wiseman could shut the two down with a snap. Did he really have a choice other than to follow Wiseman’s orders?

 

Juuban Municipal High School –

 

Usagi absently stared down at her homework while sitting under the shade of the cherry blossom tree that stood in the court yard of her school. It had been a hard couple of weeks since Jadeite had suddenly turned on them. Once more she had more questions than answers.

The weird guy that had saved them hadn’t turned up again either. She had so many questions and she had a feeling that he could answer a good deal of them. While she supposed she wasn’t surprised that things hadn’t broken her way, it still would have been nice to finally get somewhere.

The pen cap that was resting in the corner of her mouth bobbed up and down as she hummed to herself in thought. What could they even do at this point? Jadeite was gone and none of them had faith her powers would bring him back again. Clearly she had some power to release the hold that was over him but based on Nephrite she wasn’t willing to give it a go again.

“Erg this sucks…what the hell do I do.” Usagi let out a frustrated groan as she raked her hair with one of her hands.

“You can start by telling us where the Moon Princess is hiding.” A menacing voice cut through the relative silence like a hot knife through butter.

Usagi looked up from her notes in surprise at the sudden shadow looming over her. It was one of the two new girls that had transferred into the school last week. This was the taller of the two and the girl looked ready for a fight. Usagi carefully inched further back against the tree as she debated what to do.

“Makoto.” A second voice whispered harshly.

The words came from a much shorter blue haired girl. The second transfer student if Usagi remembered correctly. The two rarely separated and hadn’t made any attempt at making friends with anyone. Usagi remembered Naru informing her that the taller of the two had already been in a few fights.

“What? You said it yourself, this is the girl that almost matches the Moon Princess’s signature. So this must be the Guardian.” Makoto responded.

“Regardless…this is not the time or the place to confront her.” Ami responded with a distraught sigh.

“This mission was supposed to be reconnaissance only.”

“Must’a slipped my mind.” Makoto flippantly responded as she turned her attention back to the girl still on the ground in front of her.

 “I don’t know what you’re talking about…now if you don’t mind leaving me alone, I’ve got to get home.” Usagi responded with a nervous laugh. Internally she was wondering how the hell the two had found out about her powers. It also begged the question, how did these two know about her powers and the Moon Princess. Were they agents of Zoisite?

“Che…I don’t see how you’ve been causing Beryl and her Shitennou so much trouble. You’re a spineless little thing.” Makoto commented as she tilted her head to the side as if debating how to crack her head open for the information she wanted.

“While my partner’s manners are lacking, I’d advise you follow her request. My scanning has shown that you match the power signature of the armored girl from the café and you nearly match the Moon Princess’s power signature, there is no use denying who you are. ” Ami interjected calmly. 

“I’d prefer you didn’t talk though. I kinda wanna see how long it takes you to break.” Makoto chuckled darkly as she cracked her knuckles in anticipation of a fight with the blonde.

“Hard for me to tell you where the Princess is if I don’t even know who she is. Do you people have anything better to do other than harass me?” Usagi responded in a faux concerned tone. Seriously what was with these people? Did they have nothing better to do than to seek her out and make her life miserable? First it was a Youma, then Jadeite, then Nephrite came and found her at home, and finally here she was being confronted by two more at her school.

Usagi subconsciously started to move her hand towards the small pendent that was currently resting against her chest. If she could get to it...

“Looking to transform already? Do you really think that’d help you?” Makoto grinned as she stepped in even closer to Usagi and leaned over so she was staring right into Usagi’s eyes.

“I dare ya half pint. You’re not dealing with Zoisite or any of Beryl’s other little toy soldiers. You’re dealing with the Horsemen now. When I transform, I’m known as Conquest. While I may be the first, I can guarantee I’ll wipe the floor with ya.” Makoto suddenly stood up again before sweeping her arm back towards Ami.

“Behind me stands Famine. While I’ll beat you down with my fists, Ami here specializes in finding your weaknesses and drying up your strengths. Together though we’ll put you down before you even have a chance to transform. So why don’tcha take your little hand away from your necklace before I accidently crush it.”

“She’s right you know. Your chances of winning stand at three percent, your chances of escape stand at two percent, and your chances of losing with varying levels of injury to yourself including death stand at ninety five percent.” Ami commented as she stepped around her friend to study the Guardian.

Usagi glanced between the two while her mind started to race. Minako had gone home at the end of the day, she was still recovering from the beat down she had received from Zoisite and Jadeite. There were only a few people left in the court yard and they weren’t at all interested in what was happening between the three girls. A thought suddenly occurred to her. If she could grab them both, her powers may debilitate them like they did with Nephrite. Worth a try at least if nothing else is what she figured.

“So what’s it gonna be? The easy way or the hard way?”  Makoto cut into Usagi’s thoughts.

“Like you have to ask?” Usagi smirked as she threw the pad of paper she was writing her notes on towards the two girls as a distraction. She attempted to press her powers into her hands as she grabbed both girls by their arms.

She felt a pulse of power leave her hands and slowly seep into both girls. She pressed her eyes together as a bright burst of light almost blinded her.

Usagi almost felt herself fall down from the exhaustion of pushing that much power into Makoto and Ami. She was leaning against Makoto when she suddenly had a feeling of being lifted into the air. When she managed to open her eyes she found herself staring into the angry face of the tall brown haired girl.

“So that’d be the hard way then?” Makoto commented before she tossed the half pint towards the wall of the school. A satisfied smirk crossed her face at the sound of the Guardian making impact with said wall.

“You know Lord Death won’t be happy about this.” Ami commented with a long suffering sigh.

“He knew the risks of sending me down here, anyway you’re the one that told me you’d found the Guardian. So really this is your fault.” Makoto chuckled in amusement.

“I really don’t see how your lack of self-control constitutes as the blame falling on my shoulders. Although I suppose Lord Death wouldn’t be surprised at the turn of events here.” Ami responded dryly.

 “See Ami, it’ll all work out in the end. Besides, I could use a little bit of a work out.” Makoto commented as she started to walk towards the downed girl. As she kept walking her white fuku and skirt appeared across her body in a flash of white light. A pair of metal bracers appeared on her hands, both started to spark with electricity as Makoto powered them up.

“Just don’t go overboard.” Ami warned in an act of futility. The blue haired girl shifted her power as well and changed into her black fuku and skirt with blue trim. Her blue visor wrapped around her face. Last but not least two short swords appeared on either hip.

“Che.” Makoto grinned as she advanced on Usagi.

Usagi for her part groaned in pain from the unexpected toss into the school wall. These two were nuts. They were just talking about torturing her and possibly killing her like it was no big deal.

Her thinking was interrupted as the taller of the two rushed in with a fist covered in electricity. With a yell she dove out of the way. It was just in time from the sounds of it. The sound of the wall crumbling in was enough motivation for her to continue her roll.

The moment she came out of the roll, Usagi grabbed her pendent. It looked like she’d have to fight.

“Lunar Sailor Power!” Usagi yelled out as she completed her roll and ended up in a crouching position. A bright pillar of light consumed Usagi. A moment later the light faded away leaving Usagi in her armor with her broadsword in hand.

“Oh man…you almost look impressive. Too bad I’m going to end you.” Makoto boasted as she pulled her hand out of the giant hole she had put into the wall. With a slightly annoyed look she shook the rubble off of her hand.

“I suppose I should help so we don’t draw too much attention.” Ami called out before she drew both hands up in front of her.

“Vampire Miasma!” Ami released a stream of miasma. The black and purple colored mist quickly covered the school grounds and completely covered Usagi. The entire landscape turned into hazy indiscernible shapes.

Usagi found herself coughing as she moved her arm up to cover her mouth. She attempted to get off of the ground but found that she was too weak to stand. Whatever this mist was it was causing her to lose energy. Worse yet she couldn’t even see to attack.

The sound of feet striking the ground was the only warning she got. A crackle of electricity preceded the punch that Makoto landed on her face. Usagi almost screamed as the blast of electricity ran through her body. She had some peace of mind to bring her sword up to block the second attack. The block only stopped the physical blow. The electricity still crawled its way down the sword and into Usagi’s body.

“Lucky block, but Ami’s miasma will slowly drain your energy. Soon you’ll be too weak to fight back.” Makoto boasted as she brought her other fist under the sword blocking her and into the unarmored stomach of the girl. A grin crossed her face as the girl was sent flying backwards.

Usagi let out a scream of pain as the second attack made contact. The attack propelled her backwards and only by stabbing her sword into the ground stopped her from ending up in the wall again. She was already starting to breathe heavier from all the exertion but she was starting to feel her power drain away. Holding her form was starting to become a challenge, if this didn’t end soon she’d revert to her normal form.

“Give up now. My miasma will continue to drain you until you die. It will be a horrible death and I shall not lift my fog until you tell us where the Princess is.” Ami’s voice called out somewhere in the fog.

“As fun as it is beating the shit out of you half pint, you weren’t the challenge I was expecting. So just give up.” Makoto commented from elsewhere. With the fog slowly drifting about it was hard to make out where they actually were standing.

Usagi clenched her eyes shut for a moment as she tried to get a handle on the pain. How the hell was she going to put a stop to this fog? If Jadeite was here he could just burn the flames away. Unfortunately it was just her and she had no way to blow the fog away and Minako wouldn’t be much help either.

The sound of running feet caused Usagi to wearily lift her head. Her movements were sluggish as she pulled the sword from the ground with more effort than usual. She closed her eyes and attempted to listen for where the attack would come from. Her eyes were useless in the fog and while the fog threw off the sound, it was better than nothing.

There it was. “Lunar Rush!” Usagi cried out as she put every little bit of her power into her attack. She may not have another shot with how the fog was draining her power away. With a quick push off, Usagi sped towards Makoto the blade glowing silver with her power.

Makoto attempted to bring her bracers up to block the attack. She hadn’t expected a counter attack. Ami’s fog was hard to counter and the longer it stuck around, the more power it drained. She had expected the girl to collapse in exhaustion by now.

With a roar Usagi faded from existence. At the last moment she flipped her blade so the broad side impacted Makoto. Despite the fact she knew the girls were a threat, she couldn’t bring herself to use the blade against another human being. In a flash she reappeared behind Makoto. A small smile appeared on Usagi’s face at the sound of the taller girl falling to the ground behind her.

Makoto’s eyes widened as the flat side of the blade seemed to appear out of nowhere. The impact knocked the wind out of her. Her arms fell lifelessly to her side as her knees gave out and she fell to the ground.

“If you give up now, I’ll spare you the pain that I just put your friend through.” Usagi called out with false bravado. She was already panting from the constant drain on her power. At that very moment her armor briefly glowed white. It was moments away from fading away due to her inability to maintain the required power.

“Spare me…Makoto underestimated you but you didn’t take her out of the fight.” Ami called through the fog in amusement. Her voice seemed to come from every direction.

Usagi glanced back to the spot that Makoto had been a moment before and found that Ami was right. Makoto was nowhere to be seen. Crap… and here she was having a hard enough time holding her power in this dense fog.

After a moment of hesitation, Usagi attempted to step forward. The drain in her power was too much. She fell to one knee while using her sword as support.

“I informed you of your chances…and still you press on.” Ami pondered as she slowly walked out of the fog and into view of Usagi.

“Yet you still persist...so futile.”

“Well ya gotta give it to the half pint, she sure packs a wallop. I’d almost love to see what you could do one on one.” Makoto commented as she half hobbled into view as well.

Well she wouldn’t have gotten the best of you if you hadn’t underestimated her.” Ami responded with a slight roll of her eyes.

“Yeah yeah…I’m still alive aren’t I?” Makoto waved off Ami’s concern still disgruntled over the fact that the Moon Guardian had taken her down although it had only been temporarily.

“And how many times do I have to tell you that running fist first into battle without thinking will eventually get you killed.” Ami responded with a sigh. Really Makoto could be so insufferable with her impatience and penchant to attack without knowing the full details.

“Stop talking like I’m not even here!” Usagi belted out between harsh gasps as she continued to waver between her civilian form and her powered up form. Sweat was rolling down her face from the physical exertion of holding the form.

“Well Ami, looks like the pipsqueak is still kickin. I’ve never seen anyone last this long in your fog before.” Makoto commented blandly as she spared a glance back at the girl. What threat was she now? Sure she had surprised her with the last attack but now she was

“Hm.” Ami hummed in agreement as she studied Usagi as if she was an insect under a microscope to be examined.

“If you stop this incessant bravado and tell us where the Princess is, we shall let you live. If you do not, I will be forced to terminate you.” Ami added thoughtfully.

“Just give it up half pint. Even I know when I’m beat and you’re barely holding your transformation. Put much more energy into it and you’ll start draining your life force just to hold it.” Makoto commented with a shrug as if to say the choice was for her to make and she was only offering some much needed advice.

Usagi couldn’t even keep herself up right without putting all of her weight against the sword. The constant drain on her powers just sucked her strength away. It left her unable to even gather enough energy to respond to their taunts. Everything was starting to get blurry around the edges of her vision.

“Shall I put an end to her suffering?” Ami asked, a hint of boredom entering her tone.

“I got my fight. Although, I was kinda hoping to go toe to toe with the traitor, Half-pint wasn’t even worth my time.” Makoto responded with a wave of her hand.

Ami nodded absently before throwing her hands above her head and started to channel some of the miasma above her. It slowly took on a more solid form more akin to water.

“River of Decay.” Ami spoke her voice monotone as she unleashed one of her more powerful attacks. The watery mist roiled out from above her and splashed onto the ground before rearing up again. The watery mist left behind grass that quickly turned black while the soil it splashed onto started to crumble in on itself. The wave roiled towards Usagi intent upon consuming the fallen girl.

Usagi’s eyes widened slightly at the incoming attack and braced herself for the end. Thoughts flashed through her head. Regrets mainly and they centered on Jadeite. A certain part of her resented that he was taking up her last thoughts. Even in her own mind he was a selfish jerk.

“Gale Force!” A deep baritone voice called out before a wave of air suddenly blew through the school’s courtyard. The blast of wind dispelled the fog and sent Ami’s attack back towards the two girls. The only thing that saved the two was the fact that the winds came in so strong that it buffeted the two girls back to the point they ended up tumbling backwards.

“What the hell!” Makoto managed to recover in a splutter as she managed to pull herself off the ground with an indignant huff.

“Kunzite…how unexpected.” Ami responded, unruffled by the appearance of the first Shitennou and Beryl’s lapdog.

The tall man chuckled in amusement as he swept his dirty white hair behind the nape of his neck. In fact it looked like he had just gotten in a fight with a forest fire and lost badly. His white uniform was covered in burn marks and in some places burned clean away to the skin. Once white hair was covered in scorch marks and one of his boots was partially melted giving him a slightly tilted appearance.

“Kunzite? No, I am his twin brother. I supposed I should introduce myself.”

“Wasn’t looking for an introduction.” Makoto muttered as she stared at the man in disbelief.

Ami merely quirked an eyebrow, this man was proclaiming that he wasn’t Kunzite? It didn’t seem likely that Beryl had hidden away a second ace. If such was the case, Lord Death would need to be notified immediately.

“I am the fifth Shitennou, Malachite the demon of the wind!” Malachite declared with a steely gaze as he slammed his two hands. He pulled them apart a moment later followed by a burst of air that caused everyone else to slam their eyes shut from the dust and debris the wave of air flew through the air. As pulled his hands apart a large war hammer appeared out of the wind.

“Oh great another one.” Usagi managed to mutter sarcastically as she pulled herself to her feet before staggering a moment. Just what she needed another Jadeite…or another Nephrite. In fact what was it about her that drew these people to her? Did she have some kind of signal that just drew the crazies to her?

“Is that really how you treat someone that just saved your life? Perhaps next time I’ll just leave you to handle it yourself since you clearly had it under control.” Malachite commented sarcastically as he glanced over at the girl that was barely standing upright under her own power.

 “If you ever dealt with Jadeite, you’d understand why I’m not exactly thrilled to be saved by another one of you insane Shitennou.” Usagi responded dryly as she pulled herself back up to her full unimpressive height of four foot eleven. The longer she was out of that creepy death mist the better she felt.

“Jadeite is an amazing individual.” Malachite deadpanned at the mere thought of Jadeite actually being forced to save someone and then work with them.

“This doesn’t make any sense.” Ami commented out loud as she zeroed in on the tall man. This wasn’t like Kunzite at all yet he looked just like him. In fact the power signature was identical. It was as if Kunzite was standing right in front of them.

“You have the same power signature as Kunzite yet you claim not to be him. My scanner never lies and that means you’re Kunzite.”

“Sure sounds like Kunzite.” Makoto commented. She looked between Ami and the supposed Malachite.

A ghost of a smile graced Malachite’s face before his signature impassive mask slid back on.

“Considering that fact I’m his twin, well it shouldn’t be a surprise our power signatures match.”

“Doesn’t matter to me, I’ve been itching for a good fight and you look like you’d be a challenge.” Makoto pounded her two fists together creating sparks of electricity from the contact.

Ami placed her hand on Makoto’s shoulder and shook her head in disagreement. Now was not the time to push their luck. The man could clearly dispel her attacks which would leave the two at a disadvantage, especially if this Malachite took Makoto out. The power of her fog and mist would be wiped away by his wind attacks.

“Now is not the time Makoto, Lord Death needs to know of this. Besides he can nullify my attacks with his wind.” Ami commented.

Makoto growled in annoyance. What a freaking pain in the ass. She wanted a fight. “Just when it was gettin good.”

Ami simply rolled her eyes before she disappeared in a column of black electricity.

Makoto let out a sigh of annoyance before she followed her comrade’s lead and disappeared as well.

“Yeah you better run!” Usagi called out after the two Horsemen. She shook her fist for good measure not that it really mattered at this point. Really she was just thankful that they had retreated. It wasn’t exactly

“Do you require assistance?” Malachite queried in what may have been mistaken as concern. Although with his lack of facial movement, Usagi may be excused from mistaking it as sarcasm.

“No, I’m fine.” Usagi grunted as she almost felt her legs give out under her from miscalculating a shift of her weight off of her sword.

“Of course, you appear to be ready to fight the Dark Kingdom at a moment’s notice.” Malachite deadpanned as he leapt off the wall he had been standing atop.

“You’re just a regular comedian.” Usagi grumbled as she pulled out her phone while wearily eyeing the man. After what had happened with Jadeite and Nephrite, well she wasn’t exactly thrilled to be alone with another one alone.

“Finally deciding to call for back up now that the fight is over?” Malachite queried dryly as he stared intently at the young girl. Was this really the girl that Jordan had sent him to help? Typical. Even during the Silver Millennium the Prince didn’t play well with others and would beg, borrow, or steal to force someone else to be his go between. Malachite found himself rolling his eyes at the thought of the problems that he was in for thanks to the Prince of Phaeton.  

“No, for your information, I’m calling the other Senshi, there is no way I’m suffering your presence alone.” Usagi shot back as she finally heard Minako’s voice on the other line and promptly ignored the man’s presence.

“Well aren’t you the charmer.” Malachite didn’t even bother hiding the sarcasm that laced his tone.

Usagi finally got off the phone with Minako before she slid the phone back into her subspace pocket. Of course she would forget she put it there later but she’d deal with that later. “We’re going to go meet Minako.”

Usagi attempted her best Terminator impression as she jumped off the ground back towards the wall that Malachite had just come down from. “Come with me if you want to live!”

“And all my questions as to why Jordan dumped this on me are answered.” Malachite responded with a ghost of a smirk crossing his face before he jumped after the armored girl.

 

Usagi’s Room:

“Sooooo you’re really Kunzite’s twin? Isn’t there like a law about that or something? Twins are kinda creepy ya know…no soul and all.” Minako continued to babble as she poked Malachite’s face with her finger as if she didn’t believe that he was real.

“I’m more interest in where you’ve been this entire time.” Artemis said thoughtfully as he studied the man closely. He did indeed look like a carbon copy of Kunzite. The only thing missing was the cape that Kunzite normally wore.

“Apparently no one deigned to awaken me. Unfortunately Jordan decided in his infinite wisdom to find me and bring me into this mess. Although I have a feeling he mostly did it so he didn’t have to deal with babysitting you three.” Malachite responded dryly.

“We do not need babysitting!” Usagi retorted hotly as her face puffed up in anger. “And who the hell is Jordan?”

“The Phaeton Knight, better known as Jordan the crown Prince of planet Phaeton.” Malachite responded, a bitter tone entering his voice just mentioning the jack ass.

“Wait you mean that armored jerk that lords over you about all this crap you didn’t know you could do and bitches about every little mistake?” Usagi responded as her eyebrow just started ticking at the mere thought of that armored asshole.

“An accurate assessment.” Malachite responded with a slight nod.

“So if that Jordan asshole just activated your powers, why do you look like you’ve been through the blender?” Usagi pointed out as she gestured to the messed up uniform that he was still wearing. Even after powering down into his normal school uniform he still looked almost as bad as he had with his powers activated.

Malachite closed his eyes with an annoyed sigh before he pinched the bridge of his nose to keep his anger from showing. “You’ll learn quickly that when Jordan is involved things don’t go very smoothly for anyone involved.”

“Oh! Oh! Me next!” Minako called out with her hand raised.

The remaining three stared at the girl incredulously.

“You realize we’re not in class…right…” Usagi ventured. Sometimes the blonde really…really gave other blondes a bad name.

“Just accept it.” Artemis cut in sagely. “Fighting it just makes it worse. She can twist your logic around to the point you believe you’re the crazy one.”

“And don’t you forget it!” Minako flashed a victory sign with her fingers. “I’ve never met someone that can outlast my mouth!”

“Phrasing.” Usagi choked out as she attempted not to swallow her own spittle as she started to laugh at the wording Minako just used.

“Not something to be proud of.” Artemis muttered in embarrassment over his ward.

“Yes…well…your question?” Malachite managed to keep an impassive mask across his face despite the fact his mind was going to very bad and dirty places.

 “How come we’ve never heard of either you or that Phantom Knight dude?” Minako queried.

“It’s Phaeton…” Usagi and Artemis corrected at the same time with dual sighs to boot.

“Whatever.” Minako waved off the correction as if it didn’t really matter and to be honest she really didn’t care all that much.

“It was blocked from our minds. In fact from what I gathered while talking to Jordan, our memories are all missing some critical information in one way or another. He informed me that the Queen had been dying when she sent all of our souls forwards in time. We were supposed to all awaken and slowly regain our memories over the course of a few months. It is why none of us remember Phaeton…although that may be Jordan’s doing.” Malachite commented thoughtfully.

“He can manipulate memories?” Usagi asked with a hint of concern.

“I wouldn’t put it past him. He isn’t exactly the pillar of good faith and trust.” Malachite responded with a slight smirk.

“Well that still doesn’t answer who exactly you are. I remember the Shitennou and there were only four. One for each of the cardinal points of the compass. The Prince of Earth had the same number of Guardians that the Princess had.” Artemis interjected with a small cough into his paw.

  “That is true, but they were only ever his personal Guardians and the rulers of each of the cardinal points on the globe. I operated alone.” Malachite responded to Artemis’s question.

“So there are more of you?” Artemis asked with a small raise of his eyebrow.

“No, Earth is not nearly as large as the Moon Kingdom, I was the only one ever needed. I was the fifth Shitennou, I led the expeditionary and scout forces of the kingdom. Mainly I patrolled the poles and the unpopulated regions.” Malachite responded.

“That still doesn’t explain why no one remembers you. I’d think I’d remember two emotionless jerks.” Minako commented with a raised eyebrow as if daring Malachite to contradict her.

“Well I did not exactly have the time to attend social events and it isn’t exactly as if the Earth and the Moon had the closest relationship up until the Moon Princess and our King started courting.” Malachite commented dryly.

“Well maybe you should have made time, then I wouldn’t find you so suspicious!” Minako crowed in victory. Finally she had pointed out a flaw in his logic for why they didn’t remember him.

“So…by your logic…I should have abandoned my duties on the off chance that I could meet you. That way just in case we were sent into the future and reborn with memories of a past life, you could remember me. Forgive my neglectfulness. I clearly I’m in the wrong.” Malachite drawled sarcastically.

“I knew you’d see it my way!” Minako responded cheerfully.

“Getting back on topic, I need to know where we stand. Jordan was only able to give me a brief update and get some of my memories back that I didn’t awaken with.” Malachite attempted to steer the conversation away from the insanity that the original leader of the inner Senshi seemed to generate. A glance over at the other girl, he could only hope that the Moon Princess’ Guardian would be more able in the position of leader.

“As it stands, Queen Beryl still has Kunzite and Zoisite firmly under her control. By some method she managed to bring Jadeite back over to her side. Minako claim’s he picked up a sword Zoisite dropped and went crazy. Nephrite…well we still don’t know what happened to him, but he is no longer under Beryl’s control but he is not our ally.” Artemis reported with little fanfare.

Malachite nodded. It was to be expected. “And the rest of the Senshi?”

“Under control by a completely separate entity known as Lord Death.” Artemis responded.

“The Outer Senshi included?” Malachite queried. He needed to know what he was up against. He was already regretting the fact that Jordan had managed to dump this responsibility and disappeared off into the night with nothing more than a chuckle and a wave.

“Outer Senshi…I think I remember them. I don’t know why I didn’t know about them before but I think there were two of them.” Minako responded thoughtfully. It was odd, it was like memories were just suddenly there. As if they had never not been there.

“Oh great there are more of your crazy Senshi that we’ll have to fight?” Usagi huffed in annoyance. Seriously if it wasn’t one thing it was another and they seemed to be collecting enemies like baseball cards.

“They’re not necessarily against us. If we haven’t run into them yet it probably means they haven’t been awakened yet.” Artemis cautioned.

“Aren’t you the Moon Princess’s Guardian?” Malachite pointedly looked over at Usagi with a raised brow at her declaration that the Senshi did not fall under her control.

“Why is everyone convinced I’m some Guardian of this Moon Princess. I don’t have any memories of this Moon Kingdom you people keep going on and on about.” Usagi ground out in annoyance. Why in all hell did every single person seem to keep going on and on about her being the Guardian for the Moon Princess. It was getting tiresome.

“Hn.” Malachite decided to just drop the matter. Clearly pressing any further would be a useless venture.

Usagi was about to respond when her phone started buzzing. She glanced down to see a picture of the Phaeton Knight with PK as the caller. How cheesy…as if she couldn’t guess from the photo. It still creeped her out that he could somehow get her number on his phone.

“Excuse me guys…gotta take this.” Usagi half apologized as she stepped out of the room with a sigh of regret. She didn’t even want to know why the hell the jack ass was calling.

“What the hell do you want?” Usagi asked in a snide tone the moment she stepped outside of her room and into the hallway. Absent mindedly she started to drift down the hallway towards the bathroom.

“Sorry this isn’t any picnic for me either.” Jordan responded over the phone. “I may need your help with getting Jadeite back.”

“Why would you need my help?” Usagi responded with a growl of annoyance.

“You have access to the silver crystal, only you can purify him. He’s been possessed by something called the demon blade Dreadnought.” Jordan responded with a sigh of annoyance.

“Well why can’t you just get Malachite to come help you? Wasn’t that the entire reason you activated him? So he could be your little gofer?” Usagi glared down at the phone. “And what the hell is a silver crystal? Isn’t that what Zoisite was going on about…or Jadeite…or something.”

There was a brief pause on the other end of the line. “…Who the hell is Malachite?”

Usagi rolled her eyes in annoyance. Was he really going to play it this way? As if he didn’t know. Well fine if he wanted to play it like that. She started to talk really slow like she was speaking to a toddler. “Malachite, you activated him. He saved my life from some crazy girls in miniskirts and death fog. Kunzite’s twin brother the fifth Shitennou, ringing any bells?”

“Where the fuck are you? Are you with him?” Jordan demanded over the phone in what was practically a scream.

“Geezus…my house…calm the hell down. What’s got you all bent out of shape? Minako, Artemis, and Malachite are all in my room right now.” Usagi responded lightly.

“You need to get the fuck out of there right now. Transform and get the hell out of there right fucking now! I’m on my way now.” Jordan ordered over the phone.

A sense of dread started to flood Usagi at the tone that Jordan was using. It didn’t even phase her that the jerk knew where she lived in fact her whole body was starting to pump adrenaline into her body. Vaguely as if from a hundred miles away she heard her mother opening the door below.

“Oh Jadeite! What a nice surprise it has been so long since we’ve seen you! And you brought a friend! How wonderful, Usagi is upstairs with some friends, I’m sure she’ll be very excited to see you.”

Usagi felt the phone drop from her hand. Some part of her acknowledged the fact that Jordan was screaming at her over the phone but she couldn’t make out the words. She was just staring at the top of the landing with dread.

 

A/N: I was seriously debating taking this a different direction and letting this little rouse carry out a little longer but screw it, we’re 9 chapters and close to 100,000 words in and I’ve effectively gotten tired of not having Jadeite in a chapter in only one full chapter. I even ended up sneaking him in at the end anyway.  If I don’t start revealing things soon we’re going to hit 500,000 words by the time I reveal Usagi as the Moon Princess not counting getting the Scouts back in. Hope everyone enjoyed Ami and Makoto’s appearance!

Thanks again to the people that review, I try not to write for reviews, but I won’t lie and say it doesn’t influence my speed of getting the next chapter up:

VChanny: Glad last chapter cleared some things up! Sorry to drop more hints regarding Wiseman’s involvement with everything in this chapter for you to wonder about.

Petites sorcieres: Glad you enjoyed my nickname. Regarding Nephrite, he still has his own part to play as he is. More on that next chapter! Glad you are enjoying the plot and the characters. If it makes you feel better, writing Usagi/Jadeite feels pretty natural. Rei and Mamo is a bit odd but thanks to the anime I’m kinda ok with it.

Kai2: I may over deliver for ya…maybe…

Ginsan: Thanks again for letting me borrow Jordan! He is a scene stealer but he does help move the plot along in certain areas.

Lucyole: Yeah Jordan is kinda a jerk and manages to make Jadeite look like a loving and caring soul. What can I say, writing jerks is kinda fun. I get to use them to push other character’s buttons and react. He will mainly be used to advance the story line in certain places, so he won’t be every chapter. 

So that is that for the moment. Hopefully everyone will continue to enjoy the upcoming chapters. Hopefully we will hit the half way point by next chapter. 

 

 

 

 

 


	10. The Ice Dragon Awakens

A/N: So sorry it has been almost a year. I’ve been busy with life… annnnd Nintendo Wii U is releasing games that have done a fantastic job of keeping me side tracked. Mario Kart, Smash Brothers, and  Splatoon … soo yeah again I apologize.

 

 

Chapter 10: The Ice Dragon Awakens

 

And there he stood in her doorway. A white katana in Jadeite’s right hand in a loose confident grip as he looked up the stairs at Usagi with a feral grin crossing his face his eyes glazed over. The two stared at each other for a moment. The entire time Usagi’s mother continued to talk completely unaware of the  stand off the two were engaged in. 

Usagi’s eyes went wide as Jadeite raised his sword and prepared to swing. The thought that her family would really be in danger had crossed her mind but for some reason seeing Jadeite at her doorstep ready to strike down her mother brought it all rushing to the front of her mind. 

The presence of her mother almost caused her to pause but there was nothing for it. She’d have to risk the potential grounding later. Hopefully the fact she saved her life would be taken into consideration. Without any further hesitation she threw the pendant of the sword into the air and raised her hand above her head.  “Lunar Sailor Power!”

Jadeite’s swing was intercepted midway by Usagi’s own blade. The clash of metal on metal caused a screeching sound as the blade’s disengaged. Her eyes sliding over to her mother who was just standing there in shock over the events that just transpired inches from her. 

“Usagi…” 

“Just get out of here Mom, I’ll explain later!” Usagi managed to get out before Jadeite came in with 

another swing of his sword. Another block managed to keep the slash from taking her mother’s head off but this blow had enough power to send her skidding backwards. She needed to stop this somehow and fast. 

“Hey Usagi! What’s taking so long with that phone call?” Minako called out as she finally let the room to see where her friend had gotten too. It also didn’t help that Malachite guy wasn’t much of a talker. 

“Busy!” Usagi managed to growl out as she dodged another slash. She winced as Jadeite’s blade managed to connect with one of her mother’s vases from Europe. Oh shit… 

“Lunar Rush!” Usagi flashed out of existence intent on disabling Jadeite and taking him out of the fight. Unfortunately despite the  lightening fast attack that would have been too fast for most to counter was deflected at the last moment. Jadeite had brought his blade around at an impossible angle and blocked the blow before kicking out and catching Usagi in the stomach. 

With a groan she went flying until her body impacted with the wall and she went right through it. Plaster and debris from the wall paper went  every where .  The plaster and drywall kicking up quite a bit of dust that obscured the entire first floor.

"Gale Force!" Malachite cried from the top of the stairs standing next to Sailor Venus. The magically generated wind whipped about for a moment before it sent the remaining bits of debris out the door. The cutting wind managed to drive Jadeite back momentarily...along with ripping up most of the front half of the house door and most of the wall. 

"I don't know if insurance covers magical death wind." Minako paused a moment while tapping her finger to her chin. 

"We can worry about that later!" Artemis interjected as he appeared on the blonde's shoulder. "Right now 

we need to help... er ...the Lunar Ronin defeat Jadeite..." He finished rather lamely as he let out an annoyed sigh. Seriously why did she have to name herself something so  silly. It would have been easier to just call her the Moon Guardian...or at least less embarrassing. 

"Right!" Minako crowed in agreement before she lifted the heart shaped chain from around her waist and brought it around like a whip before bringing it crashing down towards Jadeite.  "Venus Love Chain!"

For all his power that came with the possessed blade the man's former faculties regarding tactics. Jadeite roared in anger as he realized his arm was trapped. The young Shitennou followed the length of the golden chain back to the wielder a vicious grin coming across his face. "Bad move."

One second she was thoroughly grounded on the floor. The next minute Sailor Venus was sent flying as Jadeite used the immense strength to his advantage. With a heave and a twist he pulled Sailor Venus off balance and sent her flying. Instead of letting her fall where she may, he took advantage of the fact she hadn't released her chain yet and directed her through the foyer ceiling and in the process created a new sky light. 

Even Usagi had to wince as she felt for the poor girl. She just was not having a good couple of days. Every time they got into a fight the Sailor of love seemed to get the crap beat out of her for no discernible reason other than they needed her out of the way. 

With another wince she got to her feet ready to charge back into the fray. Luckily Malachite had made his move while Jadeite was distracted and the two were currently trading blows. Jadeite with his bone white katana and Malachite with his  over sized claymore...and of course they were wrecking the house with each blow. Malachite managed to snuff the flames from Jadeite once more with his power over air. 

Concerns about how she'd explain this to her mother about the burn marks all over the walls would have to wait. Usagi paused...wait that was it! She called out to Malachite as a plan started to take place. If what 

that asshole Jadeite look alike said was correct about her being able to purify Jadeite...then just maybe.  "Malachite! Can you use your wind powers to knock him out?" 

Malachite just managed to throw the overpowered man off him with another flash of steel exchanging between the two as he gained some distance. "I have a technique but I’ll a moment to gather the energy!" 

"All I needed to hear! Now switch!" Usagi yelled as she came to the forefront of the battle between the two Shitennou. There was no further communication needed as Malachite quickly fell back and created  what he felt was adequate distance while Usagi brought her own blade in on an intercept course with Jadeite. 

Once more she felt her arm almost ring as the two clashed. The power behind Jadeite's blows reverberated up her arm and down her spine. It was monstrous and she had no way to counter it! "Come on Jadeite...I know you're too much of an asshole to just go down without a fight." She muttered more to herself than the man in front of her. 

"You're weak...too weak to protect anyone without me you're worthless." Jadeite growled out as he let loose  a breathe of fire that Usagi had to deflect away with her blade. 

She cringed as Jadeite's flame attack scorched one of the family photos her mom held dear from one of their vacations. Jadeite would be in a hell of a lot of trouble...because she was not taking the blame for that! 

Any further comments were cut off as Malachite finally interjected himself back into the fight.  "Air Lock! Level ten!  Perfect lock!" The older man called out with a considerable amount of control he managed to create  a air lock that encircled Jadeite's head only. The lock was considered impenetrable and the reason was the amount of magical power he put behind it.  Without his finesse though it would be useless. He slowly wrapped the bubble around Jadeite's head and started to draw out the oxygen.

At first Jadeite continued to struggle against the lack of oxygen by throwing a flame wave at Malachite but the flame wave quickly sputtered out as he started to lose consciousness. 

"Ow...my face..." Minako whined as she managed to hobble back inside with pieces of plaster, wood, and shingles all over her body sticking to her uniform and skin. She looked like she had run through a demolition zone. 

"So what do we do now... " Usagi asked ignoring poor Minako as Artemis shook his head in despair over the state of his charge. The entire front end of the house was an absolute wreck with scorch marks running  along walls, most of the walls with at least sword  slashes through them if not entirely destroyed by a person running through them. Of course there was also the skylight courtesy of Minako to consider and finally an asphyxiated Jadeite lying in the middle of the wreckage. 

"We could wait for the Princess...she has access to the Imperium crystal and she may be able to fix Jadeite." Minako offered with a slightly dazed expression on her face. 

"Minako...are you feeling alright..." Artemis ventured with a confused look across his face. 

"I guess why?" Minako asked with a slight hint of confusion entering her tone. 

"Because that's the first good idea you've proposed in a long time." The little cat started to snicker to itself at the fact his charge managed to take the bait. Oh it was a good day to finally get one in. Between Jordan and Jadeite he had been at the butt of all of their jokes lately. 

"Is that so..." Minako's head bowed her hair framed her face in a way her eyes became obscure. Unfortunately for Artemis he didn't read the danger in her words and continued to snicker to himself ignoring his charge. It almost cost him as Minako held her chain for a moment in both hands before switching her grip more like a whip. 

"I'll show you a good idea you stupid Tom cat!" Minako suddenly launched herself at the white feline and brought her chain down like a whip.  For his part, Artemis, managed to scurry out of the way before the two started to cause more damage to the house as Minako gave chase.

"Are they always this...animated... " Malachite ventured with a slightly raised eyebrow as he watched the two for a moment. The tall man watched for a moment longer secretly wondering how in all hell this girl was the leader of the Inner Worlds Court Guard. 

"You get used to it." Usagi waved off the question with her hand as she too brought her attention back to the real concern at hand. What to do with Jadeite. A careful poke of his stomach with the heel of her armored boot elicited no reaction. 

"Well  i'm glad to see it only took 3 of you to take down Jadeite. I'll go ahead and assume that Bubbles over there did little to help the entire operation." Jordan interjected as he appeared in his full Phaeton Knight transformation. 

Usagi glanced up in surprise at the appearance of the man she had nicknamed in her mind as pretentious asshole. The man just had this uppity air about him as if he just knew it all and they were all getting in his way. It really irked her and she had literally just met him during their last confrontation with Zoisite....speaking of. It took her a moment but she realized that Zoisite was  laying across Phaeton's shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The cruel ice wielding Shitennou was out cold and based on the cuts and bruises it appeared as though he was taken down with no small amount of prejudice. "Uh....what happened... "

"I saved you from having to explain to the insurance adjuster why it looked like a C-4 charge went off in your foyer...although good luck explaining this to the insurance company anyway." Jordan muttered near the end of his statement as he surveyed the damage in detail...which brought him to his next question. Just 

who was this Malachite  character.

"So..." Usagi started to ask what Phaeton thought they should do about calling down the Princess. In fact she realized she hadn't really gotten a chance to ask him about a lot of things. He seemed to know the answers to some of her questions so this would be a great time to...be interrupted. A defeated sigh escaped as Phaeton started talking. 

"Just who the hell are you?" Jordan asked suspiciously as he nonchalantly dropped Zoisite onto the ground...like a sack of potatoes and started to walk around the large man that looked suspiciously like  Kunzite. If not for the fact the man had clearly knocked Jadeite out he'd have started in on him right away. This must have been the man that Usagi was talking about...fifth Shitennou indeed. 

"Malachite...the fifth Shitennou." He glanced over to Usagi and Minako who had turned her interest back onto the conversation now that two new people had arrived. It hadn't occurred to him that the Jordan was still working so closely with the Scouts. Normally he appeared, got what he came for, and disappeared to the corner of the galaxy again. It appeared the jig was up. 

"I apologize...you see Jordan did not wake me up...I had simply hoped he would be gone and I would gain your trust faster if I linked myself to Jordan." Malachite offered up with a slight shrug of his shoulders. 

"If you think I'd trust anyone based on being linked to that jerk you've really got the wrong idea of trust." Usagi interjected before being cut off by Jordan again. 

"Wrong  answer try again. You look like one of Kunzite's awful clones  i've run into." Jordan responded with a roll of his eyes. This was already getting boring and he honestly had better things to do than chit chat. "I'm going to give you to the count of three to explain or I'll just flay you where you stand." 

"One..." 

"Just as arrogant as you were during the Silver  Millennium., ,you really think you know absolutely everything and we're all just pieces on the game board to you." Malachite interrupted with a hint of annoyance. 

"That's because I do know absolutely everything." Jordan snapped back with a hint of annoyance. "And you most certainly are not someone I remember. So let's lay everything on the table, just who are you?" An accusatory glare was thrown in for good measure. He didn't like things interrupting his plans and he certainly did not like to see someone that knew how he operated. 

Malachite favored Jordan with a knowing smile as if he knew he was pissing Jordan off just by his very existence before deciding to once again explain it all but this time in detail. He could see the look of disbelief and he meant actual disbelief rolling off Jordan's features. Then again the man prided himself in knowing everything that was going on. 

"So I'll still have to call bullshit on this whole thing. There is no way I wouldn't have known either through snooping or badgering." Jordan finally responded after the story was completed. While on the surface the story made sense, some things just didn't add up. Why lie to the girls to get them to trust him and make up the entire thing of him awakening Malachite. 

"My position wasn't exactly advertised." Malachite responded with a slight smirk. "I was someone that not even our Prince truly knew about. I was promoted during his father's time. While Kunzite and the others learned protocol and dueling, I was out in the wilderness clearing the far reaches of the kingdom of threats." 

"Still why wouldn't Kunzite say anything..." Jordan said mostly to himself as he attempted to assess the situation . There was only one way to find out. While Malachite was in the middle of some probable explanation of some sort he took out a hypodermic needle from his subspace pocket. While the others 

were distracted he jabbed the needle into Malachite to get a blood sample. Some lab work would sort  all of this out. 

"What the hell!" Malachite swore as he ripped his arm out of range of the genius crown prince. A glare leveled at Jordan over the completely uncalled for sneak attack. When he saw the vile of blood in Jordan's hand a dark snarl crossed his features. "What is this about?" 

"Just going to play around with your blood since it's not like Kunzite conveniently was the one that was working with Jadeite. Hope nothing too scandalous comes out." Jordan gave a mock gasp at the end before placing it safely back in his subspace pocket. "Anyway I've got some things to do so try not to get into too much trouble." With a wave of his hand he started to walk out the door. 

"Hey wait a minute! You can't just dump us with Jadeite and Zoisite!" Usagi managed to come to her senses before he disappeared to wherever he went to sulk when he wasn't busy bothering them. 

"That's right you've got to at least take one of them with you!" Minako called out in an attempt to assist Usagi. "Leaving bodies lying around is probably against some city ordinance!" The entire group as a whole stared at the young girl as Artemis just shook his head. 

"What! I've read the city laws and if they don't permit hobos sleeping on the benches  they're certainly going to prohibit body dumping!" Minako defended herself as she gestured to the two still unconscious bodies of Jadeite and Zoisite.

"I'm not even going to give that a response." Jordan muttered before turning his attention back to Usagi. "As to what to do...well you'll have to decide  Blinky , but, I’d suggest doing what you did with Nephrite...I mean what are the chances you'll fuck it up a second time." With a chuckle at Usagi's expense he phased out of existence. He would be doing some research on Malachite. 

Perhaps if he was lucky he’d be able to find a way to Pluto and have a family reunion or at least find out if she knew anything about Malachite. The Guardian of the gates of Time would be next to impossible to find...if he didn’t have a Plutonian blood himself. Luckily he had enough to track down his other cousin.

“Asshole.” Usagi muttered under her breathe as she watched the jerk off just disappear on them...again. He was almost as bad as Jadeite. Wait scratch that, he was worse, something she never thought possible. 

“So…..who should we bring around first?” Minako asked as she looked between the two downed Shitennou. While Zoisite was an unknown, Jadeite was definitely going to be a jerk about it, especially since he had gotten turned back while fighting with her. “My vote is Zoisite...he can’t be any worse than Phantom King and Jadeite.” 

“Phaeton Knight…” Usagi and Artemis attempted to correct Minako once more. 

“Well whatever he wants to call himself, it doesn’t matter.” Minako waved off the correction just like every other time. “So...are you going to do the thing?”

“The thing?” Usagi raised an eyebrow as Malachite looked on with a hint of amusement at the byplay between the two. 

“Whatever  Phaser Kaizer was talking about with Nephrite.” Minako explained.

“Right…” Usagi muttered as she didn’t even bother to correct Minako this time. Then her thoughts went back to the phone call. Didn’t Jordan tell her she had access to the silver crystal or something? That couldn’t be right though...that was what Minako had said the Princess used. 

Unfortunately they didn’t have a way to call Princess Serenity back and there hadn’t been any sign of the girl since their encounter when Zoisite attacked. Perhaps she was busy resting. Who knew...but it certainly meant the Silver Crystal was off limits. With a shake of her head she decided to just forget about 

it and just attempt to do what she did to Nephrite again...what were the chances she’d screw it up...again. 

“Alright then! I’ll try and fix them. So since there are four of us...let’s take a vote. Who wants to wake up Zoisite first?” Usagi asked as she surveyed the three conscious people in her house. It’d probably be best to get this done and fast since she realized her mother had probably called the Police which meant they had wasted time bickering...as usual.

It was a unanimous  vote ...Zoisite would go first. Apparently no one was too keen on waking up the sandy haired jerk. It was a case of better the devil you didn’t know than the devil you did know. A phrase few people ever uttered but in this case there was little chance Zoisite could actively be worse than Jadeite. 

“Right…” Usagi said more to herself than anyone else. All she had to do now was touch Zoisite and hope that her powers didn’t turn him into a psychopath like Nephrite...what were the chances it’d happen again really. If she failed all it would mean was another round of disbelief and bitching from Jadeite. 

Right she had to do it and not worry about the future. With the eyes of the other three upon her she psyched herself up one last time then she grabbed onto Zoisite with all her might. For a moment nothing happened then just like with Nephrite there was a momentary hue of silver glow that fell across the two. 

Just like before she felt Zoisite channeling his element subconsciously. Whereas Nephrite had channeled lightning, Zoisite channeled ice. Usagi almost drew her hand away in surprise but she managed to have enough presence of mind to fight through the chill and ride it out. 

For the next minute the silver hue around the two grew brighter and brighter. Zoisite’s face changed from calm to  pained and finally returned to a peaceful existence. Usagi meanwhile broke out into a slight sweat from all the power she was using. With a sigh she finally broke the connection when she felt Zoisite’s power cease to fight her power. 

“You alright?” Minako asked as she cast her eyes between the two. They still had to break Jadeite of his control and Usagi looked wiped just from taking care of Zoisite. 

“You can take a moment of rest if you need it.” Malachite interjected in a soothing tone. Even he could see the strain taking place on the girl’s powers from what she was doing. It wasn’t something he could claim he understood but he knew she was using up a large chunk of her energy to somehow break the hold Beryl had on the two.

“I’ll be fine...I gotta get Jadeite freed before he wakes up.” Usagi responded with a hint of exhaustion in her tone. Despite that she managed to move herself over to Jadeite’s body and repeat the process. 

The moment her hands laid upon Jadeite though she felt a fierce power rising up to challenge her. With a frustrated frown she observed the white Katana glow purple around the edges. So that was how Beryl was doing it then? Like she’d let a piece of metal take over Jadeite and keep him. Not when she needed him back so she could scream at him for being a dumb ass. 

With another push of power she started to make inroads and force more and more of the darkness out. The longer she pushed the more she felt Jadeite’s powers awaken and combine with her own. Unknown to Usagi the others watched in surprise as the silver hue they saw previously became tinged with red. 

“This is taking longer than last time.” Malachite commented idly as he glanced at the clock. 

“She’s going to expend all of her energy…” Minako responded in a worried tone. She could see the amount of energy going into Jadeite. Even Usagi’s transformation began to flicker as the Moon Guardian pushed more and more energy against the blade that seemed to be holding Jadeite.

“Is there a safe place we can take them after she is finished?” Malachite queried. From the looks of it, no one would be in any type of shape to travel. 

Minako put her finger to her lips as she thought for a moment before an idea came to her. “We can take them all to Jadeite’s place! I’m sure he won’t mind!” A nearly devious smirk crossed her face causing Malachite to raise an eyebrow. 

“Hmm... Jadeite’s place.” Artemis interjected as he seemed to think about it. “Well it’s not like Zoisite will have a place to stay anyway so he’ll probably end up living with Jadeite.” 

“I could also use a place to stay.” Malachite interjected. 

“It’s settled then! Once Usagi completes operation wake up the jerk, we take everyone to Jadeite’s apartment.” Minako slammed her fist down into her open hand. “And it won’t even be breaking and entering since we have the body of the owner.”

“Oh yeah that’ll hold up in court.” Artemis muttered as he lamented over his charge’s...unique view of the world. 

The conversation stopped as they heard a sudden scream and turned to see the silver and red hued glow around the pair encompass the pair entirely. The purple miasma colored hue generating from the white  katana broke completely. The blade turning  a pure silver for a flash of a moment before Usagi collapsed on top of Jadeite completely drained of power. 

“Should we…” Malachite began. 

“Take pictures for blackmail?” Minako asked as she brought her cell phone out. “Yes...yes we should.” 

Malachite let out a defeated sigh before picking up the still unconscious Zoisite. Perhaps this entire operation had been a bad idea. First Jordan had returned far earlier than expected and now he was the only one awake to deal with Princess Venus. Well the cat was up as well but Artemis didn’t seem too inclined on  reigning her in. 

-Jadeite’s Apartment-

When he came to the first thing he realized was the fact he that people were talking but they sounded far away. After an experimental blink he quickly closed his eyes again. The light hurt like a bitch and it brought attention to the massive headache building at the base of his skull. With an audible groan Jadeite mentally cursed Usagi and then Zoisite and then Beryl as his memories came flooding back of what took place over the last day or so. 

After a deep  breathe of air he mentally gave himself the count of three he forced his eyes open and pushed himself up into a sitting position. Immediately his upper torso collapsed in on itself from the pain of the purification process causing Jadeite to gasp once before clamming up. 

Sitting in his room drinking tea were people he never expected to be sitting down and playing nice. Well not everyone. It appeared Usagi was still passed out on his sofa. The rest though...Minako was sitting in a chair with Artemis sitting on the tall back portion above her head. Zoisite and Kunzite were sitting on bar stools listening intently to the blonde.

The possibility he had been pulled into an alternative universe didn’t seem out of the question. The sudden drop in conversation made him realize that everyone’s attention was now on him. 

“Glad to see you survived the purge.” Zoisite finally spoke up after surveying his fellow Shitennou while offering a small smile. “I attempted to heal you as best I could but Usagi sort of brute forced her way through the process of freeing you.” 

“Of course she did.” Jadeite muttered sarcastically as he eyed the two. “So Usagi managed to get both of you in one go and avoided turning you against us?”

“She did manage to avoid such a fate.” The edge of Zoisite’s lip curled up in a slight smirk at Jadeite’s 

antics. It had been entirely too long since they had almost all been together. A quick glance to his right...well almost. Although Malachite seemed to act much like Kunzite he had lingering doubts despite his explanation. 

“And the Pancake King helped!” Minako chimed in helpfully. 

“Now you’re just making stuff up.” Artemis bemoaned as he swatted his charge’s head. There was no way she was this much of an air head. How did she even twist Phaeton Knight into Pancake King? Perhaps Phantom Knight he could believe.  Phaser Kaizer was a stretch but Pancake King? 

Minako hummed to herself for a minute before she launched into a detailed explanation of what had occurred since Jadeite had gone crazy. 

Jadeite stared in disbelief at the girl as she got up to provide an explanation. The depressing thing was that he realized he was following along with her bizarre explanation and it was actually making some semblance of sense to him.

Judging by the looks of confusion that Zoisite and Malachite were sporting at the end of the explanation they hadn’t managed to follow Minako’s….unique thought process.

Jadeite just put his head in his hand as he put things together. “So let me get this straight.” 

“Usagi managed to fix me and Zoisite after...and I hate to say this...Jordan turned up to save you both from me.” Jadeite shuttered...he had hoped that the memory he had of the Phaeton Knight showing up had been due to the demon blade that Beryl had used to take control of him. If Jordan was in play they were all screwed...well except maybe Zoisite since the two  were technically cousins...maybe. 

“Then this Malachite guy.” Jadeite jerked his thumb over. “Which no offense...but we’ve just kind of accepted as telling the truth without any real concern that no one has ever heard of him and now he 

knows where two out of three of us live.  Shows up.”

“Offense taken…” Malachite muttered to himself. The tall man had mostly remained quiet during most of the conversation.

Jadeite just shot the man a glare before turning his attention back to Minako. “ Which brings me back to my final question. Why of all places would you bring two potential unknowns back to my apartment?” 

“Well….” Minako placed a finger on her chin as if trying to figure out a way to rationalize it. “Artemis and Malachite thought it was a good idea!”

“I said no such thing!” Artemis practically screeched. 

“So the cat and one of the potential unknowns I referenced earlier as part of the potential problem...thought it was a good idea?” Jadeite spoke slowly as he attempted to work through the  girls logic. 

“Well...that and Zoisite doesn’t exactly have a place to stay  soooo I figured you probably wouldn’t mind rooming with him since it’ll be just like the good old days!” Minako finished before flashing a gigawatt smile. 

Jadeite just shook his head in defeat. Sure why not...just drag in a guy that even Jordan was suspicious of...then again Jordan was suspicious of everyone and one that could potentially turn out like Nephrite. 

“While it has been nice meeting you all, I must take my leave.” Malachite announced as he stood up from his seat and started to make his way over to the sliding glass door that seemed to be everyone’s preferred entrance into Jadeite’s apartment. 

A frown crossed Jadeite’s face as he observed the man that looked just like Kunzite. If he was feeling 

better than he was...that is feeling like he was run over by a freight train he may have attempted to question the man further. As it stood he decided to just deal with that issue later. Already his life just became more and more complicated. The center of it all started with Usagi. 

Zoisite hummed to  himself in thought as he watched Malachite disappear but rather than voice his thoughts the smartest of the Shitennou...a title no one ever argued...turned his attention back to Jadeite. “I hope you don’t mind a roommate but with all the questionable people that have suddenly taken an interest in the Moon Guardian it’d be best if we stick together.” 

“No problem.” Jadeite muttered as he glanced over to Minako who seemed to just be thrilled about something. “What’s got you so happy?” A slight cringe came across his lips...why did he even give her an opening. 

Minako shot a gigawatt smile at the two conscious people in the room. “Easy! We’re finally winning. Haven’t you noticed ever since Usagi joined us we’ve been gathering more allies to our cause? I think we can finally get the girls back to us. We just need the Silver Imperium Crystal and once we track down the Princess we’ll put Beryl down in no time flat.” 

“It won’t help.” Zoisite voiced his thoughts without even realizing it. The introverted Shitennou blushed lightly when he realized that all of the attention was on him. Jadeite had raised an eyebrow and Minako’s smile had fallen into a frown. 

It took the ice Shitennou a moment but he pressed onwards. He hadn’t put it together when he was under Beryl’s control but now that he had regained enough of his memories he realized the signs the Senshi had exuded.  Soul Corruption. After a moment to gather his thoughts he voiced his thoughts. “The Senshi were all suffering from Soul Corruption. This isn’t just a case of their memories being blocked. Whatever happened to them...the soul was completely corrupted.” 

“Yeah but the Silver Crystal should be able to purify the soul.” Minako stated although a little unsure in her declaration. While she had been sure Jadeite had said before that the Princess should be able to save them. 

Zoisite shook his head with a frown. “The Silver Crystal will purify their souls. Purify everything...the entire soul will be erased as in its current form.”

“You mean...they’ll be erased?” Jadeite ventured. Even the usually sarcastic jerk fell into silence at Zoisite’s words. It was supposed to be easy. They had found the Guardian of the Moon and then they’d find the Princess and the Earth’s King. She would free the Senshi and the King of Earth would save the Shitennou and everything would be perfect. 

A glance over to Usagi and he realized that Minako was right. It all centered  around Usagi. Nothing had gone their way until they had activated Usagi. It had been a slug fest of never ending  Youmai prior to her activating. Still...there had to be a way. He turned his attention back to Zoisite as the man seemed to be contemplating the response. 

“Not erased...truly I do not know but there is no way that the Silver Imperium Crystal would be able to keep them alive. Not with the amount of corruption their souls have endured. Perhaps if they Princess had saved them right away but no the corruption had spread throughout their entire bodies.” Zoisite sighed in resignation as he eyed the two in the room. 

“No…” Minako’s face fell. There was truly no way to save the Senshi? She was the only one to survive due to her powers. The rest would be destined to die or conquer them? There was nothing she as the leader could do. The young blonde girl almost curled in on herself at the statement. 

Jadeite looked away from the group a frown on his face. While normally he’d rail against the injustice he knew Zoisite was a genius. Perhaps not on the level of Jordan but he trusted Zoisite’s deductions. “Could 

Jordan...could he figure out some way…” He trailed off already knowing the answer. 

Zoisite didn’t answer the mood of the room already down as it was thanks to his deduction. It hadn’t been his intention...stupid mouth just blurted out information without even thinking how it’d affect the people around him. Perhaps the thought that Jordan could do something would give them some type of hope. 

Minako for her part sat there absently petting Artemis. It wasn’t something she wanted to hear.  The fact that the Senshi were all but a lost cause. It would just be her, Usagi, and the Moon Princess.  A slight line of determination crossing her face. She had been playing this entire time…thinking it’d be alright when in fact it’d just be three of them. 

Perhaps they could find the Outer Senshi but Minako doubted it. How would she even contact  them.

The entire group grew silent as they all drifted into their own thoughts and concerns. Each concerned about a different issue but ran parallel in way. Most were thinking about the fate of the Senshi in one way or another. 

Gates of Time - 

Jordan phased into the existence at the gates of time. He had expected to meet the business end of a staff but it was conspicuously absent. In fact he couldn’t detect his cousin at all at the entrance to the time gates. This was where she always stood guard...then again it had been thousands of years. 

With a quick shift he phased into his armor. A frown marred across his face. It wasn’t normal for the Time Gates. Trista was always here. If she wasn’t someone would have invaded and changed the timeline. Even if he wasn’t fully blooded he still had enough royal blood to the people of Pluto that he would he felt it. Perhaps he wouldn’t have known what it was that changed but he would have felt it. 

The  click of his boots echoed through the fog as Jordan walk further and further into the fog. The deeper 

he threaded the thicker the fog and still no sign of Trista. A slight frown crossed his face. This wasn’t something he’d have expected but it looked as if the Gates of Time were truly unguarded which meant that Trista was either absent or dead...he hoped that it was the former but for Trista to leave…

Author’s Note - 

 

Shorter than normal but eh I had to get myself back in gear and this chapter was mostly talking and explanation to a certain extent. Some foreshadowing and some more information revealed. Zoisite is back on their side and so is Jadeite but of course it all comes with a price.  Next chapter I’ll try to touch on Nephrite and a little more on Usagi. 

Anyway thanks again for anyone that has reviewed past or present. Hope I can get myself back into writing this story.


	11. Sex Dolls and Root Beer Floats

So hey chapter update within a week. Pretty darn good if I don’t say so myself and just broke a 100,000 words boom! So I’m just wondering if I anyone has figured out Malachite yet. The reference is going to be a  bit of a stretch but the clues are starting to be dropped . Anyway if you’ve got an idea or have it figured out feel free to leave it in a review or PM me. I promise he is canon. I even made a little mention in the chapter th at may give some people a clue since I didn’t really give anything the chapter before. I’ll start dropping some larger and larger hints up to the reveal. 

 

Chapter 11: Sex dolls and Root Beer Floats

 

- Gate’s of Time-

Jordan slowly made his way deeper into the fog a frown crossing his face. Something had pulled him here but he had a sinking feeling he was walking right into a trap. That shouldn’t be possible…the gates were always controlled by Sailor Pluto. The girl hadn’t even shirked her duty to save her people when the planet fell…nor did she provide anyone warning but that was an entirely different matter…time was a tricky thing. 

He half wanted to call out but shook his head, no, that would do nothing but provide anyone intruding on the domain the confirmation that someone was indeed here. 

“ Time .. Lock .” A voice barely over a whisper seemed to reverberate throughout the fog obscuring the direction of the attack and allowing the attacker to get the jump on the Phaeton Knight.

Jordan’s face was frozen with a look of sheer surprise etched across his face. Rarely if ever was he completely caught flat footed and caught off guard. Most times he was at least ten steps ahead of 

everyone on the board if he hadn’t won the game already and was just waiting for the other player’s to realize he’d won. 

“You’ve already disrupted the timeline to the point it’s almost irreparably broken. Until it can be fixed I’ll have to keep you here.” A voice called out from the fog. The attacker appeared satisfied that the attack’s power would hold the man for at least the time being until more permanent arrangements could be arranged. 

The tap of heels echoed throughout the Gates of Time as the attacker left the Phaeton Knight frozen in time slowly disappearing from view as the fog grew heavier. Once more the attacker wondered if the path was the correct one but the die was cast and now any measure would be taken to put the desired future back on track . Even if it meant sacrificing life force to keep the Phaeton Knight from counteracting the time and space distortion immediately with his own powers. 

Not a moment later the figure clutched their shoulder and winced in pain. Already the life force was slowly being drained away as the Phaeton Knight fought against the prison he was placed in. It wouldn’t last long but it had to be enough to keep the Knight from freeing himself in time to affect the plans in place.

-Earth- 

Usagi stared down at the text message from Jordan, renamed Pancake King after she discovered Minako’s new name for him, for what felt like the millionth time trying to figure out why he would do this. He had oh so kindly informed her that he had taken care of her parent’s memories of the encounter with Jadeite and the fight in the house. Once more she cursed him and his very existence. While he had gotten rid of the images of the Sailor Senshi and the Shitennou he needed a way to explain what happened.

She flopped back on her bed and stared up at the ceiling of her temporary prison... er room. With a scream she vented her frustrations. “But why’d that jerk have to make them believe I joined some kind of biker gang and let them into the house!” She howled in rage over the injustice of it all. 

Usagi flopped over to her stomach and moodily glared at the window. Did biker gangs even exist anymore? They were huge in the 70’s or 80’s but who would even believe she would join one over the summer and then invite them over to put a hole through the roof and wreck up the foyer. How did that even make sense...shouldn’t the entire house be trashed? Why would they just trash the entrance...ugh the jerk couldn’t even make up a convincing story. 

Unfortunately it was convincing enough for her parents to buy into...and the police...and the insurance adjuster. So now she was in her room grounded unless she was at her summer job that her parents had voluntold  her to get until they deemed her sentence served. The only plus side was that she was able to see Minako, Jadeite, Zoisite, and occasionally Malachite while she worked. Not to mention her hunky boss Andrew wasn’t bad at all...minus the fact he was taken. 

The sound of power tools jolted her from her brooding...the one plus side was that her mom got the skylight in the foyer she always wanted.  Courtesy of Minako of course.

Perhaps she wouldn’t be so angry if she actually deserved it. Actually scratch that she’d have accepted it. After everything that occurred earlier in the  summer she’d have understood if her parents grounded her if they found out what she was doing by night and recently by day. 

Once more she was thankful they had managed to convert Zoisite especially since she had a hard time sneaking out to assist them with any of the minions that Beryl sent to collect energy. The plus side of losing Zoisite was that the attacks had slowed significantly. 

Then again from what Artemis had been able to relay it wasn’t much better now that they were 

running into the Police Department’s quick response unit. It consisted of the same two girls that had attempted to take her head off. Perhaps it was best she wasn’t out in the field too often since they didn’t seem to doggedly pursue anyone like they had with her the one time she had fought them.

With a final check of her phone she decided to turn in for the night. Although how she managed to sleep with how often the Dark Kingdom managed to find her house like they did...The stray thought disappeared into the ether a moment later as she drifted off to sleep. Right back into the odd dreams she’d been having lately.

-Usagi’s Dreamscape-

It was a grand gala being held in a palace only it was like nothing on Earth in fact from what she could tell it was in fact on the Moon. Hanging in the sky above her sat the Earth spinning lazily with the Moon tethered to her orbit. 

There was a tinge of worry in the air she could feel it radiating off the people at the party and even in the conversations. Talk of Queen Beryl from Earth seemed to be the hot topic. 

With no real direction in mind she found herself meandering through the ball room. Some of the guests parted before her while other guests stopped her to chat. The entire time she was responding to people she never met and talking about subjects she certainly didn’t know about. It was like she was an entirely different person. 

It was during the middle of her conversation with one of the lesser lines to the throne that it all went pear shaped. There was a mighty explosion outside and suddenly screams rent the air as people started to run. She found herself fighting the sea of people to reach the throne. 

There standing with a visible injured man with black hair stood Minako...she could recognize the girl 

even know. Although she looked a little older and just a little more serious. Next to her stood...but no that was Conquest and Famine. Somehow she knew here they were Jupiter and Mercury. Finally a girl she had no knowledge of stood close by to the dark haired man supporting him as he appeared unable to fully stand from the wounds.  Her mind supplied the information...Mars. 

They were screaming something at her as she approached but it was as if she was listening through a rushing waterfall. She could pick up a word or two but the meaning was lost on her. In fact that she what the entire dream was like. 

Usagi felt herself returning to the world of the living. The dream world started to destabilize around her as the entire scenery disappeared first and then the people started to phase out of existence. The Moon started to shake as if trying to awaken her itself. A final voice broke through the rushing waterfall back drop if only for a moment. “Remember! You’re the………” It broke up before words could make it through. 

-Usagi’s Room-

A moment later Usagi woke up with a giant gasp of air as if she was coming up from under the ocean after being under far too long. She wiped the sweat from her brow as she sat there in bed slowly bringing her heart rate down as she realized it was all of a dream. Until she realized she couldn’t remember anything about the dream.  Except a voice at the end pleading for her to remember. But remember what she wondered.

It of course was no use. No matter how hard she tried she could never recall much if anything of the dreams that she had. The memories of what dreamed of were always just out of reach. She felt if she could just figure out what those words meant it would all become clear. 

A glance at the clock indicated it was well past 7AM which meant she would need to get ready for 

work soon anyway. With an irritable sigh she turned off her 7:30 alarm. Those extra thirty minutes would have been nice. Once more she debated telling Jadeite and the others about the dream but she feared the inevitable backlash.

Jadeite of course would make fun of her, Minako would offer up some solution, Artemis would probably make some wisecrack, and Zoisite would probably try to hook her up to one of his inventions. 

With a shake of her head she decided to just ignore it not like it would help them right now as it was. 

-Beryl’s Throne room- 

“Well Kunzite?” Beryl demanded in an annoyed voice. Nothing had gone her way since the thrice damned Phaeton Knight had entered the picture and helped turn Zoisite and Jadeite back to the side of Sailor Venus and her compatriot. The only blessing was that the Knight seemed to have taken a leave of absence recently which suited her just fine. 

“I believe I have located  all the holder’s of the Rainbow Crystals. If I can activate them all at once and bring them back to our base we will have a very formidable line of fighters much stronger than our current stock of available Youma.” Kunzite responded with his head bowed to his Queen. 

“You believe?” She nearly screeched in anger at her once most trusted  Shitennou’s words. Ever since she had started to suspect that he was more loyal to himself than her, the signs started to pop up more and more. While she couldn’t put a finger on it...something just didn’t sit well with her. 

“They are hard to track...what with the little power I have to devote to the project.” Kunzite responded calmly with no trace of annoyance at his Queen’s screech or demands. 

“The Youma have been bringing back plenty of energy. While the other continents do not hold as 

many of those reborn from the time of the Silver Millennium their energy will do.” Of course that was the entire reason she was so fixated on Japan as a whole. She could go anywhere and she had been to get her energy.

The main issue she ran into was that the normal humans just didn’t have the kind of energy those reborn from the Silver Millennium inherently possessed in their bodies. None would know it except those like the damned Senshi who had their memories returned. Those reborn from the Silver Millennium both had more energy they could steal and the people recharged their reserves faster. If not for those Senshi and her turncoat Shitennou she could practically milk the same people every week in Japan. Outside of Japan the people with enough power were few and far between. Those people had less energy and took months to recover. 

An annoyed sigh left Beryl’s lips. “When will you be ready?”

A slight smirk passed Kunzite’s face before the stoic look returned. So she hadn’t pressed him? Excellent, his time and most of the power the Youma did collect were indeed going to his own personal project. Something Beryl would discover far too late to stop. He regarded his Queen for the time being and decided that giving her what she wanted sooner rather than later would both sate her and keep her busy while he schemed. “They will be identified and awoken within a fortnight.” 

Beryl seemed to regard her subject and final Shitennou for a moment. A frown crossed her features. The timing felt too soon after all of the hemming and hawing Kunzite had put forth the last month or two about finding her greatest weapons. There was nothing for it though...she’d have to trust it’d be done. Her own time was spent diverting what energy she could to keep her true Queen alive and to keep her own favorable status. Those blasted Horsemen had been gathering more energy from other sources that Endymion refused to reveal in her presence. 

Beryl watched with disinterest as Kunzite took his leave of his own free will. There it was again, his rebellious streak, once subtle it was not painfully obvious he no longer cared about her commands unless it furthered his own goals. 

She absently tapped her fingers upon her throne before deciding upon her next course of action. Until Kunzite had activated the Seven Great Youma there was little she could do. Well there was something she could do. A small smirk crossed her features. There was an ally yet unknown to her allies and enemies alike and that was in her favor. 

One last look around her throne room confirmed she was alone. A press of the button and a figure appeared on the mirror’s screen shrouded in darkness only she truly knew the person’s identity. “I’m losing control. Only Kunzite remains and he has started to show signs he will try to replace me.” 

“Fear not Beryl...the interloper has been dealt with.” The voice responded calmly across the monitor. 

“Excellent...so then I will soon have everything in place to eliminate Endymion and his Horsemen.” Beryl’s voice dropped to a whisper a slight smile curling across her face. 

The figured simply gave a small nod before terminating the communication leaving Beryl to contemplate her future movements and ways to hopefully keep Kunzite under control a little longer. Until he made any overt movement against her she would keep him by her side. Of course after her compatriot provided the solution to the issue at hand she would once again have all of the Shitennou under her control and the Horsemen would be removed from Endymion’s side forever. 

Unbeknownst to Queen Beryl a small black cat made  it’s way back towards the Horsemen’s chambers by way of the ventilation system. While the black cat didn’t have the entire plan, Luna, had gathered enough information to make sure they were on guard for Beryl’s next move. 

-Earth- Game Center Crown

Usagi collapsed exhausted behind the bar counter. Damn little ankle biters were everywhere and she was dead tired after her nightmare last night. The rush had just ended when she heard the sound of three seats being taken. She held back a groan at the thought of more work when she looked up to see her friends had taken seats at the breakfast bar. 

Jadeite looked a little haggard as did Zoisite while Minako had her trademark smile across her face. 

“I don’t know why you two are so tired. It’s 3 in the afternoon.” Minako chirped happily as she ordered her usual from Andrew he luckily had appeared to relieve Usagi from doing any further work. 

“Ignoring the phone call at 1 in the morning about the Youma attack at the concert certainly helped you get your beauty sleep.” Zoisite groused. 

“And I maintain the fact that you never called me!” Minako responded with a raspberry sent the ice  Shitennou’s way. 

“And I maintain the fact that you seem to conveniently only show up for the easy ones that we could’ve taken without you.” Jadeite growled. “I can base how much of a bitch a Youma is going to be to put down based on if you show up or not.” 

“Not my fault all the crazy strong ones show up while I’m sleeping.” Minako responded with a small smirk. 

“I thought we just never called you.” Jadeite responded with a glare leveled at the blonde. 

“Never said the two couldn’t be mutually exclusive.” Minako gave them both a gigawatt smile that caused Usagi to just shake her head in amusement at her  friends antics. 

“So how’s the forced labor going there  Blinky .” Jadeite mentioned sardonically as he eyed the blonde’s uniform. For some reason the white and green motif that Andrew had picked out just didn’t go well with her blue eyes and light blonde almost silver blonde hair. 

Usagi childishly chucked a muffin from the binned day olds at the smirking Shitennou. “I don’t need you calling me that too! We’re not making that nickname a thing.” A slight pout crossed her face when Jadeite simply cocked his head to the right and the muffin sailed off course. 

...Right into the back of Andrew’s head. 

The young man turned around after getting winged in the head.  The young owner leveling a playful glare at his worker. For her part,  Usagi, redirected the blame to Minako by pointing her finger at the other blonde causing Andrew to shake his head in amusement before turning his attention back to small group of four girls and one guy at the table. 

“Very smooth.” Jadeite commented sarcastically as he rolled his eyes at his  teammates antics. 

“Anyway...until I can convince my parent’s  i’m not in a biker gang...I’m stuck working until they forget or I pay off the insurance bill.” Usagi grumbled petulantly over the situation. 

“Well there’s always the chance they’d forget…” Zoisite offered diplomatically but knowing the kind of damage Jadeite could inflict without outside influence he assumed the story invented by Jordan was fairly creative and believable.

“Well it’s either pay it all off myself or be under Jordan’s thumb forever.” Usagi muttered as she went back to cleaning the glasses and silverware behind the counter. 

“Aww is Pancake King being mean again?” In a tone of voice that indicated she actually believed Jordan was named the Pancake King now. 

Jadeite and Zoisite shared a small chuckle at the man’s expense before Jadeite decided to prod the bear a little longer. 

“Afraid he’d dredge up more proof of your supposed activities?” Jadeite asked with a smirk. 

Usagi turned red with embarrassment before she quickly rattled something off that no one else caught. 

“I’m sorry come again?” Minako suddenly interjected. It was gossip she just knew it! She had something of a sixth sense for this kind of thing. 

“I said before the jerk left to wherever he went off to he offered to pay for all the damages and convince my parents I was taken in against my will to protect my family.” Usagi said in a rush.

“ Anddddd ?” Minako prodded “helpfully”.

“If I wore this outfit he picked out for a biker babe photoshoot. He said something about a calendar…” Usagi mumbled in embarrassment and anger.

“He wouldn’t…” Zoisite started even though he knew with Jordan the possibility was in fact there.

“Would you want to test that theory?” Usagi responded dryly as she raised a slight eyebrow at the young Shitennou that she had learned was in fact somehow related to the jerk. Out of everyone so far she tended to prefer dealing with Zoisite. The man’s actual personality was a complete 180 from his personality under Beryl. He was genuinely a nice guy and while a little socially awkward seemed to have his heart in the right place. 

“No... no I would not.” Zoisite concluded before scratching the back of his head awkwardly. Sometimes he wondered why Jordan had to be so  mean to everyone...then again he remembered the most of 

Phaeton’s ending out of everyone. While he’d love to share what he remembered...well he didn’t want to face Jordan’s wraith.

“That’s what I thought.” Usagi responded with a slight smirk. 

“Well I for one vote for you to do it anyway.” Jadeite cut in with a small smirk. 

“Pervert.” Minako and Usagi intoned together as Usagi debated throwing another day old pastry at his head. Unfortunately her supply was desperately low...she may or may not have been using them as weapons whenever Andrew decided to tease her about something. 

“I am not.” Jadeite responded petulantly before continuing on before he was oh so rudely interrupted by the two air heads. “I mean we’re getting our collective asses handed to us and we could use you out there.” 

“I thought you were doing fine without me.” Usagi sniffed snootily. 

“Well right now we’re getting by but Minako’s not much help.” Jadeite paused to let Minako realize she was just insulted.  The girl’s yell of “Hey! I’m not useless you’re useless!”  Confirmed that he could continue. “We still need you back in action to help us when we run into those freaks from the Police Department. We’ve lucked out so far and the times we’ve run into Nephrite have also been when the Police Department arrives so the two  end up fighting each other but eventually our luck will run out.”

“Well unless you have a couple thousand dollars  laying around…” Usagi offered helpfully. She saw the look Jadeite and Minako started to get on their faces. It was the look of two people plotting something illegal. “And nothing that would get me in  even more trouble.” She finished dryly. 

“I may have a solution for that…” Zoisite mentioned helpfully as he rummaged around in his messenger bag for a moment. Luckily being the genius he was he had managed to secure himself an 

alias for his civilian personality and had assisted Jadeite in solidifying his...how Jadeite hadn’t been caught yet was beyond him.  

“ Ooooh is it a present for me!” Minako called out causing the other three to look at her dryly. 

“Well...is it…” She asked a little more uncertain now from the looks everyone else was giving her at her question. 

“Right anyway...I have for you something that should help you slip out to help us at least at night.” Zoisite finally pulled out the item and presented it to Usagi. It was in a clear plastic bag and from what the group could tell it had Usagi’s face and hair.

“Is that…” Usagi started as a sinking feeling started to creep up her spine at the way too life like looking thing in the plastic bag. Even from behind the breakfast bar she could tell it was a highly detailed plastic doll of her. 

“A sex doll! It’s a sex doll!” Minako practically screeched in amusement before breaking into a fit of laughter causing other patrons to momentarily turn their attention to the girl. Said girl was currently trying to keep herself from falling onto the floor from laughing so hard. 

“It is most certainly not a sex doll” Zoisite hissed his face flushed in embarrassment. A quick look over to Jadeite confirmed he had no help from that corner either. For a brief moment he realized how Artemis must feel dealing with the three of them. It was like wrangling a bunch of toddlers and their sense of humor rotated completely around sex, name calling, and poop jokes. 

“It is a complicated living replica of Usa…” Zoisite sighed as he observed the signs from the two obviously holding in their laughter and one not even trying a little. A stray thought crossed his mind similar to what Artemis had wondered many times prior. Would it have been better if he had just 

stayed under Beryl’s control?

“Go ahead.” A wave of his free hand indicated he no longer cared what they did or said about his invention.

“How many nights did you spend up with that little invention?” Jadeite nudged Zoisite with a lecherous smirk on his face. “I didn’t think you liked Usagi like that.” When he observed the red tinge on Zoisite’s cheeks he knew he had him. “Come on tell the truth.”

“What...I!” Zoisite half choked on his own words while he attempted to come up with a proper response to Jadeite. Once again his thoughts went back to the whole oversized toddler analogy. 

Usagi deigned to save the poor man from Jadeite’s teasing. From having to deal with him herself she knew how much of a pain in the ass the jerk could be when he found something that embarrassed you in any way he’d latch on and never let go. Sometimes she wondered why anyone ever blessed Jadeite with his powers. “Alright, Zoisite,  i’m all ears. What does your wonderful blow up doll do?” 

“My “blow up” doll as you so eloquently put it is an advanced piece of hardware that I’ve constructed to simulate a real living person. Once you deploy it, it will be able to breathe, respond to questions, and even has limited motor movement.” Zoisite summed up his project before providing the plastic bag to Usagi without further flourish.

Minako sat there for a moment before she nearly fell off her stool as a new wave of laughter erupted from her. Jadeite soon followed suit as the two listened to Zoisite’s explanation. Every time he hit on anything questionable they both just laughed harder. 

For Zoisite’s sake, Usagi, managed to reign in her laughter and stowed the plastic replica of her into her school bag. It’d be a little weird trying to inform people why she had a blow up doll replica of 

herself lying behind the counter.

“Thank you for the...hmm...replacement me.” Usagi ventured a little uncertainty leaking in her voice but it sounded better than what Jadeite and Minako were calling it that was a fact. 

“Certainly.” Zoisite responded with a small smile. At least one of the three of them could sometimes manage to be respectful...or at least reign herself in long enough to fake it. 

“Great! Now that you can come out again I guess I can turn my phone off silent when I go to bed.” Minako offered helpfully causing the two Shitennou to level a glare at the young blonde. 

“I thought you said we never called you.” Jadeite interjected stonily as he debated if he really wanted to rip into Minako over this. 

“Or was it that you needed your beauty sleep.” Zoisite followed up in an icy tone. 

Minako sat there a moment debating on how to respond and after a moment of hesitation decided the best course of action was to flee the scene. “Well you know what they  say, Necessity is the mother of Interaction!” Minako declared suddenly and like that the blonde was off like a shot, through the glass double doors before anyone could even respond.

“Did that make sense to anyone else or am I the only one suffering from a stroke?” Jadeite asked as he tried to figure out Minako once more. 

“Well on that note I think it’s time we left.” Jadeite declared as he pushed himself off the stool. 

“It would be prudent to attempt to get some sleep.” Zoisite agreed. 

The two exchanged goodbyes with Usagi before they left following the trail of hurricane Minako. 

It wasn’t until everyone had left that Usagi realized that no one had actually paid for their drinks. A 

slight twitch started above her right eye. Great more money out of her pay that could go towards that bedamned insurance claim and instead it was being used to pay for her lazy friend’s drinks. Silently she swore vengeance against the three of them...although mainly she found herself blaming Jadeite. 

-Earth- Nephrite’s Apartment.

Nephrite sat on his balcony in the glow of the city lights. It made it hard to connect with the stars here in the city but to him they appeared brighter than most. Instead of dim stars washed out by the saturation of light pollution he at least could detect their general location. Not for the first time did the appeal of moving away from the city enter his thoughts. Unfortunately it would take him away from his goals. 

He absently dropped his hand to grip the rail as a massive headache bloomed at the bridge of his nose. A small amount of blood leaked out of the corner of his nose.  Every time with that cat. It would make his life much easier if Zero found another way to establish a connection with him or if he could find a way to make Zero appear outside of his mindscape.

With a long suffering sigh the weary Shitennou closed his eyes to begin the journey into his trance like state where he would connect with Zero once more. 

It only took a few minutes for Nephrite to settle down enough to enter his  Zen state and was once more dropped into his mindscape. As always the pictures of the Silver  Millennium played out like movies along the walls of his mind scape. More and more pictures were added as Zero assisted him in unlocking more of his memories from the past. It appeared Queen Serenity had locked all of their memories down to keep the Moon Princess safe. 

While Zero had been unable to unlock the memories containing their target, every day they got a little closer. He could feel her somewhere in the city just waiting for those loyal to the Moon Kingdom to 

find her.

As usual the grey cat sat there in the middle of his mindscape just waiting for him. The small cat seemed to eye Nephrite up for a moment before deciding to speak. “The Senshi and the Shitennou are getting stronger. They have converted Zoisite to their cause. If gain Kunzite they will surely defeat Beryl.”

Nephrite grunted in agreement at the assessment. The last few battles had gotten worse since Zoisite had turned to the  Senshi’s side. It wasn’t for lack of trying but every time he got close he’d get stopped by those Senshi Huntresses that seemed to be part of the Government of Japan. Perhaps...perhaps it was time to enter into an alliance. 

“Zero...I have a thought that may finally sway the favor towards our side.” Nephrite began as he started to hash out in his plan in his head. Yes it could indeed work for them. The Earth’s forces seemed to have a goal of wiping out the invaders.

“Oh?” Zero asked with a cat like smirk.

“We are allies of the Earth so why not work with them rather than against them to destroy the Moon. Clearly they have some idea but if I provide them the proof that the Moon is in fact a threat that isn’t something they can just devote some resources when they make them available.” Nephrite proposed the plan with an easy smile. To kill the Moon’s Princess they’d have to work  

Zero seemed to ponder the plan for a moment before humming to  herself as she padded towards Nephrite. “I believe it is time to teach you how to truly harness my power. If we are to ally with those loyal to the Earth we will need to give them a reason to believe in us. Power is an excellent motivator.” 

-Earth-  Yoyogi Koen

“Crescent Beam!” Sailor Venus yelled as she pointed her finger towards one of the Youma that they found attacking the people in the park. She watched with some amount of satisfaction as the creature took a glancing blow from her attack and snapped around to focus on her. 

Jadeite fell back from his opponent and ended up landing next to Sailor Venus. The Shitennou of the East took a quick survey of the field. Not good at all. They had arrived too late and people were still lying all around the park. The Youma were taking full advantage of this to keep them from using their higher  level attacks. “I hate to say it but I hope Lunar Ronin shows up soon. She’s the only one other than Zoisite that can use higher level pinpoint attacks.”

“Hey!” Sailor Venus yelled before lifting up her chain. “This love me chain is certainly at least  mid level !” The perceived insult on her abilities hadn’t gone unnoticed by the blonde and as if to prove a point she targeted the original Youma that had shaken off her Crescent Beam attack and was currently attempting to harvest energy off of a couple still conscious but too afraid to run. 

“No way buster! Venus Love Me Chain!” She let fly her glowing chain of heart shaped metal and watched with satisfaction as it wrapped around the creature’s arms. The moment that Minako paused to give Jadeite a wink was the moment the Youma used  it’s superior strength to lift her off the ground and send her sailing across the park. 

“Well I guess it’s time to go save her…” Jadeite muttered to himself while shaking his head. When would she learn to stop trying to wrap the chain around their  arms. Literally any other part of the body would have been more effective. With a put upon sigh he leapt into the air intent on following her flight trajectory to wherever she had crash landed. 

His jump was interrupted as he had to dodge out of the way of Zoisite’s Ice Dragon that rushed over 

head. With a less than graceful landing he sent a glare at Zoisite and the cause of the deviation from making it over to Sailor Venus. “You wanna watch where you direct that thing?”

“If we’re pointing blame, how about you watch for enemies behind your back.” Zoisite responded without a hint of sympathy regarding Jadeite’s current situation. 

Jadeite glanced behind him to come face to face with a nasty looking frozen Youma with arms that had giant blades fused on just below the elbow. A confirmation that yes those two arms were mid swing and yes without Zoisite’s timely intervention they would have connected killed any witty remark. “Shit…”

“An apology would have sufficed.” Zoisite responded sarcastically before swiping his rapier and letting the Ice Dragon attack shatter into fine crystal, the frozen Youma, shattered as well. The waves of frozen ice slowly melted away blanketing the area in low fog bank. Previous attacks had slowly caused the entire area to develop fog in an attempt to keep Youma from finding more humans to feast on. Of course it was a double edged sword as it made it harder for them to find the enemy as well.

“You really think this’ll work?” Jadeite completely ignored the request and gestured to the fog bank that currently was about waist deep but was slowly settling to around mid-thigh in the immediate area. It at least covered the humans already passed out from detection.

Zoisite raised a fine eyebrow at Jadeite’s inquiry. “Unless you plan on burning it all off with some of your area level attacks it should give us the advantage as long as you use it to strike the enemy. Keep your patience and strike them if they’re stupid enough to jump into the air in an attempt to find us.”

Jadeite grunted in acknowledgement before he proceeded on with his original course of action, finding Sailor Venus and then after saving her proceeding to yell at her until he was satisfied she wouldn’t target the arms of a Youma ever again. He kept his leaps low and to the ground to avoid 

becoming target practice.

After a moment’s pause to watch his comrade disappear into the ever growing fog bank, Zoisite, called up another Ice Dragon. While it wasn’t the perfect way to keep their movements from the enemy it was the only pinpoint attack he had available that could create fog and kill the Youma that Kunzite had no doubt released. 

Speaking of the man had yet to  deign them with his presence but that was nothing that surprised him. After all the man had a habit of manipulating events from behind the scenes and misdirection. A beam  of energy brushed past his head putting him back in the present. Worrying about Kunzite would have to wait…

A displeased look crossed his face when he tracked the beam back to the source...it should be no surprise they showed up but it meant that Minako was in danger and Usagi as well if she had arrived. The Senshi Huntresses had arrived. The blade freak stood there calmly in her white  gi and white pants with the black crystal sword of her lazily spinning in her hand as she seemed to look for her target. Jadeite he’d imagine since the man was equally skilled with a sword as her. 

A moment later his deduction was proven correct when she disappeared over the top of the fog banks no doubt in pursuit of her target. That of course left him. A quick movement of his rapier deflected the beam of energy enough that it went whizzing by into the low hanging fog. 

“I didn’t expect you to arrive so quickly.” Zoisite attempted some type of communication only to be met with another beam of energy erupting from the fog. Once more he flicked his rapier and deflected the attack. 

“Surrender and we will let you live.” The calm voice carried through the fog. 

It was the same line every time and every time he gave the same answer. “I’m afraid that just isn’t possible.” With a swipe of his rapier he used his affinity for the water element to subtly draw some of the fog away from other parts of the battlefield. While Jadeite would appreciate the clear view, he found that he fought better striking from the shadows. 

There were no more words between the two only a quiet game of cat and cat. The two were both stalking each other through the fog looking for an opening to strike a killing blow. While Michiru attempted to keep the distance and zero in on her target, Zoisite attempted to sneak up and catch her unawares at close range. 

Further down the battlefield Minako was grimacing as she held back the woman’s blade with her chain held taut between her hands. The heart shaped chain was screeching in protest as more and more force was brought down on it by the woman. Behind Minako laid Jadeite currently unconscious with Malachite not far behind. The young man had been hit unawares from behind and Malachite had stepped in at the last moment to take a blow for Minako. For Malachite’s troubles h e got a sword through his chest.

“Just give  in, you can never beat me as weak as you are!” Haruka declared as she changed direction of attack and turned her forceful down stroke into a lunge that was aimed directly for Sailor Venus’s abdomen. 

For her part a quick twist and release of her chain brought her out of harm’s way for the moment but the woman quickly pursued her target. Sailor Venus grunted as she managed to bring her chain up once more this time catching the girl unawares when she wrapped her chain around the sword. 

“You should know that you can never defeat the Senshi of Love and Beauty!” She managed a quick superior smirk before she twisted the blade out of Haruka’s hand. The black space sword went 

spinning away into the still somewhat patchy fog. It landed a ways off with a metallic clatter as it must have hit one of the pathways.

Haruka glanced down at her hand for a moment before a smile started to spread across her face. “Well that was a surprise...but did you really think that was the only weapon I had?” Her hands disappeared into the sleeves of her  gi . 

“Oh no you don’t!” Venus declared as she realized that the girl was going to be rearmed in a matter of seconds. “Venus Love Me Chain!” With a heave she launched the now glowing chain right at her enemy  in an attempt to keep her from rearming. For a moment it looked like it was going to work but right as the chain came in contact with the blade freak as they had dubbed her, the woman broke free. 

Haruka deflected the chain at the last second with two short swords that appeared to be made of the same material as the space sword she normally used. Without wasting another  breathe she started to pressed onwards towards Sailor Venus. The attempts to stop her with that glowing chain were all in vain as she simply deflected or dodged the attack. The time there would be no stopping her. 

“Sorry sweetie but your time is up!” With a final lunge she drove both of her blades into each of Sailor Venus’s shoulders before driving her into a tree. While the blow didn’t outright kill the girl it all but disabled her ability to move by pinning her to the tree. 

Sailor Venus screamed in pain as she felt the two blades pierce her and then screamed once more when she was run right into the tree. The bark of the tree digging into her back while her bodice once white bloomed with stains of red. Maintaining the transformation started to become a chore from all the

trauma she had just experienced. The powers of Venus started to flicker slightly as her advanced 

healing ability started to shunt power away from everything else in an effort to keep her alive.

“If this is the best you can do, I don’t know why Nephrite was so worried.” Haruka commented as she took a step back to admire her work. Three down and from what she could tell Michiru was currently fighting with the fourth. Now all that was left was…

If not for her finely tuned senses she wouldn’t have had the reaction time to withdraw her swords from the girl’s shoulders and block the broad sword that came in from the side. Lunar Ronin had arrived and with a vengeance. This was the first time she had managed to slip away with Artemis’s help and she was glad she had. 

“Sailor Venus!” Usagi called out in concern as she took a half second to glance at her downed friend. Thankfully with the swords pulled out the girl was already healing. A frown crossed her face as she turned her attention back to the opponent at hand. “You’re going to regret hurting my friends. In the name of the Moon I’m going to give you one hell of a beat down!” 

Usagi drove the swords up and away from Haruka driven by anger over her friend’s condition. While she started forward she kept pressing Haruka back further and  further a silver sheen sliding over her eyes for a moment as she felt her hands guided just like when she had learned her previous attacks.

“Lunar Piercing Moon Blade!” With a roar the longsword started to glow white and energy started to pour off the blade in waves paralyzing Haruka to the spot. The blonde haired officer was unable to move as the shockwaves of energy seemed to produce an electromagnetic pulse that kept disrupting her muscles. 

Haruka could only bring her blades up in an attempted guard as the Moon Guardian came rushing in and broke her guard with little effort. The two blades went spinning away broken from the power of the attack. 

Usagi came to a stop on the other side of Haruka. The longsword hissing as the high levels of energy dissipated from the blade. Right after the waves of energy retreated back into the blade, Usagi felt the power draw. The energy required had almost drained her to the point she could barely hold her transformation. Her other attacks had never done this and she felt exhausted despite being fresh into the battle not five minutes ago. 

With a glance behind her she confirmed her opponent was down. The girl’s entire front covered in blood from the intense blow. A moment later blood started to blossom across her  gi on her back as well. 

Haruka couldn’t believe it. The girl’s strength...her power...it was truly monstrous. She looked d own at her chest unable to comp re he nd what had occurred. One moment she had the upper hand and the next...well she could barely feel her body healing the damage was so great. She managed a coughing choke as blood and spittle dripped out of her mouth from the blood pooling in her lungs. 

After her body caught up and realized the amount of damage done she fell to her knees slumped over gasping for  breathe . What would have happened next would have changed everything perhaps if the Senshi had been more prepared for the encounter but as it stood fate had other plans for their little group. 

Michiru appeared in a flash next to her lover. Not a word was said but the glare leveled at the entire group said it all. If not for the life threatening injury she may have stayed to finish off the weakened group but she felt Zoisite closing in. Not a second later before she drew Haruka to her chest and disappeared in a second flash as she leaped above the fog in retreat. 

A moment later Zoisite landed unevenly clutching his one hand to his shoulder in an attempt to keep his injured arm steady. His once white uniform was scorched and in some areas burned off 

completely. A wince crossed his face as he fell to one knee. “Good you’re here.”

“Yeah...yeah it was close but I made it.” Usagi panted a little as she managed to bring herself up to a standing position while using her sword as a makeshift crutch. Her energy was slowly replenishing itself but she was still drained. They had been lucky that the girl hadn’t wanted to sacrifice her friend to wipe  them all out. 

“Are they alright?” Usagi asked as she finally managed to steady herself without the assistance of her sword. 

Zoisite had managed to hobble over to the three and check on them. “Venus is in a healing coma as is Malachite, and Jadeite is just knocked out.” With a relived sigh Zoisite let himself lay back against the tree that Minako had been pinned to a moment later. 

“Good.” Usagi stated as she eyed the man as he didn’t look so hot himself. “You gonna be alright?” 

Zoisite made a noncommittal grunt as he let himself rest against the tree that Minako had been pinned to a moment later as he will his energy to return faster but his body automatically shunted his energy to healing his wounds. “I will be...but we need to get out of here soon.”

A quick look around and Usagi saw what Zoisite meant. Without a constant influx of water into the air the fog was dying down. While the  youma had retreated she could hear the sounds of people starting to awaken. If she really pressed her vision she could even make out the faint sight of red and blue strobe lights from the police car and other emergency vehicles arriving on the scene. 

“Any chance you’ve got enough energy for a transport spell with three other people  riding piggy back?” Usagi asked.

“No idea...you think Jadeite would mind if we left a leg or arm behind?” Zoisite responded dryly. 

A small worn out smile crossed Usagi’s face at the thought of just what kind of response they would get from the man. “I can’t imagine he’d be pleased but I bet he’d work something out.” 

“Before or after he kills us?” Zoisite questioned in a good natured tone as he finally felt enough energy coming back to him that he wasn’t completely in pain from the injuries that were almost healed or fighting to maintain his transformation. 

“Such a kill joy.” Usagi responded playfully as she also finally felt her energy return. It was by pure instinct that she managed to bring her sword up but not before a thread of black lightening pierced her through her arm and right into her chest. 

With a scream of pain Usagi felt her entire body convulsing as she felt her blood start to boil. Everything seemed to slow down as she watched the remainder of the spark of black lightening enter her body. In what seemed to be the distance she heard a tree exploding as the black lightning strike exited out the back of her chest. 

With a shuttering breathe Usagi fell to her knees completely overcome by the sudden shock of pain. At least to some extent her body must have realized she was dying. The armor which for a moment showed how bad the damage was with a giant chunk of it blown out shattered. Unfortunately for Usagi the parts of the armor had blown into her chest and the embedded pieces of armor had been the only thing keeping her from bleeding out. 

With one last gasp for air Lunar Ronin now revealed as Usagi fell forward as her eyes rolled into the back of her head.  Dead to the world.

A/N: 

Sooo Usagi is dead…surprise? Go Cliffhanger! 

Again thanks for the reviews everyone. Hope everyone is enjoying the direction if not feel free to leave a review or PM me. Of course you can also leave a positive review. I’m good with those too. 

Ginsan ...promise you’re not mad…but I needed a believable way to take Jordan out of play for the next few chapters. No worries he will be active soon enough and extra ornery due to this little unexpected surprise. I’m sure you probably have put together who did it since there is only one person that could actually catch him by surprise due to his unique ability. 

TropicalRemix : Unfortunately as I said in my PM…it’s gonna be a while. The way this story is going it may be 200,000 plus words prior to completion. I promise I will make the wait worth it. 

Vchanny : Thanks for getting on board again and glad you enjoyed the chapter. Hope this chapter didn’t disappoint. 


	12. If I Fall

A/N:

Name change yes after 12 years I decided to change my pen name from the one I picked out while still in High School. It just didn’t fit anymore so here we are.

 

Second note, chapters will probably be shorter from now on. More in the 7-9 thousand word range than the 15 they were at previously. This is so I actually get them out in a semi timely schedule rather than languishing for months on end when I am trying to get close to 15 thousand words.  

 

On to the chapter of course and sorry in advance for this...you may hate me for this one. As always reviews welcome along with comments and criticisms. Once again more hints regarding Malachite.

 

Chapter 12: If I Fall

 

“Usagi!” Nephrite heard Zoisite scream through the dissipating fog. So his strike had been true then from the sounds of it. He proceeded forward through what little cover under the fog that remained until he came upon the scene before him. Jadeite, Sailor Venus, and...What appeared to be Kunzite...all unconscious from the looks of it while the girl he knew as the Moon Guardian lay bleeding out on the ground with Zoisite hovering over her. Even now the man was still like a mother hen worrying over her chicks.

 

The wisps of smoke slowly floated off of the tip of Nephrite’s halberd. The large man watched in a detached manner as his once friend and ally attempted to save the girl. He could already tell she was beyond saving. Working with the law enforcement of Tokyo had allowed him to finally bring those loyal to the Moon to their knees. With the Moon’s Guardian out of the way he could wipe the rest of the pawns off the board as his leisure.

 

While some of his energy had recovered, Zoisite, was unable to do much for the girl. The strike had been so fast he had been unable to warn her. His hands were currently compressed over the wound as he debated using his remaining powers to freeze the wound. While it would close the wound it would kill the girl with the loss of blood and the drop of temperature her powers couldn’t handle his energy being introduced into her system as well.

 

For the first time in his life he wished Jadeite was actually awake. The man could have scorched the wounds closed with his fire leaving only some nasty scars. For now he did the best that he could hoping that Usagi’s regenerative abilities coupled with the compression could overtake the grievous wound.

 

A quick look up from the current situation at hand confirmed the one that had attacked them. Nephrite. “You’ve crossed the line. If Usagi doesn’t pull through, I’ll personally hunt you down and kill you myself.”

 

For a moment Nephrite just looked at Zoisite with a curious expression as if he couldn’t fathom why he was so angry. Whereas Zoisite’s voice was jagged and raw with emotion, Nephrite’s voice, was more like a scientist discussing the results of an experiment he had little interest in. “Crossed the line?” He paused a moment as if trying to determine how to proceed. “I am merely wiped away a roadblock to restoring Earth. The girl was my test subject for my new powers that Zero has provided me.”

 

“Is that all we are to you? Roadblocks on your deluded path? This Zero is lying to you!” Zoisite yelled out in frustration. He didn’t know what to do at the moment. The others hadn’t shown any signs of coming around and he felt Usagi slowly slipping away even with her advanced healing powers. It was all falling apart around him and there was nothing he could do.

 

“Why would the Earth lie to me? Don’t you understand foolish boy.” Nephrite took a great deal of pleasure in mocking the genius Shitennou. For all of his brains the man couldn’t ever understand the power he had been given. Still if he could sway the more logical Zoisite where he failed to sway Jadeite…

 

“This is the burden I carry, Zoisite, the burden of being the Moon Queen’s experiment. Didn’t you ever wonder why the Earth was where the Dark Kingdom started? Why the Moon never interceded on our behalf? Sure they claimed that they were taking a hands off approach that we were not yet ready to enter into the alliance.” Nephrite monologued as he casually circled the younger Shitennou and the dying Guardian of the Moon. With his unlocked powers he could sense the tiniest drop of energy and he could feel her slipping away.

 

“What does it matter? We couldn’t stop them in the end. Even after we pushed them back and forced the Moon and the other planets to take our help we were still exterminated. If you don’t help us now it’ll play out all over again!” Zoisite ended with a flash of anger coming out. While he spoke with Nephrite he was racking his brain for a way to save Usagi without killing her. In the back of his head though he knew it was futile the blood was coming out too fast. If he attempted to fashion any kind of tourniquet she’d bleed out even faster without his hands creating pressure on the wound. He’d have to keep Nephrite talking and hope someone else woke up soon.

 

“It matters because we would bow down to a kingdom that wants to restore itself to its former glory using Earth as the new seat of its kingdom. Earth has already suffered once due to the Moon’s arrogance and I will not let it happen again. She experimented on me! On my family then when we didn’t give the results she wanted she locked the power away! She claimed we were too dangerous to wield the power and we couldn’t handle it! Zero was locked away in my blood line for centuries and if the Queen hadn’t locked those powers away we would have never been over run! She knew I would have the powers in me and she never unlocked them! I could have saved us all! ” Nephrite stated with a conviction that only one truly deluded by their belief could speak with. There would be no swaying Nephrite from the path he walked.

 

“You speak as if you’ve seen the future.” Zoisite queried with more than just a little doubt in his voice. A quick glance while Nephrite’s attention seemed to move to the sky for a moment confirmed that Jadeite at least seemed to be coming around. If he could hold out just a little longer…

 

Nephrite stopped his slow walk around the two to pause...a small knowing smile crossing his face as he gave Zoisite a patronizing look. “Only glimpses but I know enough to put a stop to the Moon’s rise to power and set Earth up as the new seat of the galaxy. It is but one of the powers I have been given by Zero...you see Zero is the embodiment of Earth’s power. It was one of Queen Serenity’s little experiments. You see she wanted to find a way for the Sailor Senshi to be able to access all of their planet’s power in a moment’s notice.”

 

“While normally they only could access perhaps a quarter of their planet’s power they could eventually tap into the source directly to siphon off from the main source. That power would make them nigh unstoppable. The problem was that they had to go through 3 more breakthroughs from their base power level. In a fight it isn’t always possible to do so and that was the Senshi’s weakness...are you starting to understand yet?” Nephrite queried.

 

“So you were given a short cut by the Queen. And now you’re all boo hooey that she experimented on you to see if the short cut was a viable option. Are you angry at her for doing it or are you angry that your newfound powers were labeled a failure?” Zoisite mocked the older Shitennou viciously in an attempt to make him see reason and the fallacy in his logic. There was just something about the story that didn’t seem right...and he had a feeling that Zero had been feeding Nephrite only bits and parts of the truth. There was something this Zero was hiding and he would get to the bottom of it.

 

“No…” Nephrite was about to continue but a familiar energy entered the area. He could feel the pressure of the Moon Kingdom’s Silver Imperium Crystal. It was odd though, he hadn’t noticed it last time. Even Zero was making it known that something was wrong with this energy. Well no matter, today he would land a killing blow to the Moon Kingdom and pave the way for the Earth to be the center of the Universe.

 

-

 

There she was. Princess Serenity making a grand entrance once more just in time to save the Senshi and the traitors to Earth that was the Shitennou. Thanks to being prepared for her arrival this time he wasn’t surprised that she was coming down from above. Just as well for him. With one hand placed behind his back he started to gather energy at the tip of his finger for the finishing strike.

 

A huge smile was across Princess Serenity’s face. Kunzite had released her once more informing her that her Senshi needed her! It felt fantastic to be outside and feel the wind across her face. The dank and dark lair that Kunzite kept her in was so dreary and depressing. Kunzite had promised that she would soon be able to join her Senshi for the long term.

 

There they were and even from here she could feel their low energy. Clearly the evil Shitennou that Kunzite had told her about had them all trapped. It would be up to her to save them. With a last flap of her silvery wings she let the transportation created by her Black Imperium Crystal turn to energy and disappear into the sky. With a grace no human possessed she started to use her energy to float down to Earth.

 

As she touched down she brought her crystal to bear between her two hands. The black gem started to glow brightly as she eyed up her target. “Your days of evil are over Nephrite! With the power of the Imperium Crystal I shall banish you to the depths of…”

 

-

 

“Reaper’s Lightning!” Nephrite called out as he whipped his hand around the entire appendage wrapped in lightning. There was a flash before the black bolt shot forth from the tip of his finger. The lightning that was running up and down his appendage followed the initial attack. The entire bolt piercing the girl through her left hand causing her to drop the Imperium Crystal in surprise. A moment later the bolt blew through her hand and pierced directly through her heart.

 

The Princess screamed out in pain as she fell to the ground her heart beating out of control. It was an odd sensation...dying. She could feel her body misfiring and signals going out of control. There was only one chance to save herself and her loyal subjects. Another scream rent from her lips involuntarily as she attempted to reach for the crystal.

 

“You talk entirely too much Princess.” Nephrite commented as he walked towards the Princess casually kicking away the Black Imperium Crystal the downed Princess attempted to reach for. He lazily spun his halberd as he debated how to finish the Princess off. While he could feel her body slowly dying her hand had blocked enough of the attack that she wasn’t immediately erased from existence. Like a bug that had been mortally wounded, she knew she was dying, yet she still struggled. “Even when you know you’re about to die you still cling to life. What to do...what to do…”

 

“Nephrite stop this at once!” Zoisite growled out a rather useless warning since he wasn’t in any position to actually do anything. Every minute he felt Usagi slip a little further towards death. Her entire body was becoming pale from the blood loss and clammy. Zoisite redoubled his efforts of holding the wound closed although some small part of him knew it was in vain.

 

“And who is going to make me?” Nephrite asked without even bothering to turn to acknowledge Zoisite as he had plenty of time to deal with the wayward Shitennou. In due time they’d remember their true mission. For now though. He brought his attention back to the Moon Princess. She was still suffering from his initial attack although the fact she was still alive truly spoke to her fortitude and willpower.

 

Usagi felt her life slipping away. Her energy kept draining out of her in buckets. Every breathe came out a little shorter and a little slower. A small smile creeped across her face...she could feel Zoisite trying to save her but she realized it was all in vain. Even she could feel her powers failing her as her body stopped trying to save itself and started instead numbing her entire body to prepare her for death and make her as comfy as possible.

 

With one last short breathe Usagi gave in to the numb feeling that had been steadily spreading across her body for the last time. Suddenly she just felt at peace like she would be drifting off to sleep for the last time. It would be just like it. Only this time she’d never awaken again. Some part of her was alright with that...perhaps it was a trick of her body but she accepted it. She felt the peaceful numbness finally reach her heart and with a final pump it gave out. The girl Usagi Tsukino age 16 died right there in Zoisite’s arms with the young man trying to hold in the blood as it slowed to a trickle.

 

Just as Usagi silently fell into eternal sleep the Moon Princess succumbed to her wounds from Nephrite and the spark left her body as well.

 

A pulse of pain caused Senshi both near and far to stumble in pain for a moment as they clutched their hearts. A sense of failure screaming at them from some primal part of their beings.

 

Minako awoke with a scream and attempted to locate the source of her pain. Shuddering back to consciousness she saw her Princess and her friend Usagi both lying unmoving on the ground. Zoisite was attending to Usagi so she started crawling toward the Princess. The pain too intense still for her to stand. Her ungloved hand touching the hole in the Princess’s heart. Tears welling up in her eyes. They had failed Serenity a second time. No...she had failed. There was no one else to blame she had been too weak to stop the Princess’s death.

 

In the Dark Kingdom the three Horsemen fell to their knees clutching their hearts as they felt a brief constriction and for a moment a wave of sadness washed over them. The reason for it they knew not but it was there. While Rei would quickly consult the great fire, Ami would start tracking the energies on Earth, and Makoto would search their base in vain for any sign of an attack.

 

Two Senshi in the Tokyo Police Department’s medical wing went through a similar experience. An already injured Haruka winced in pain as she sat up in her bed aggravating her wound previously given to her by Usagi. Michiru similarly went down to one knee and clutched her heart while a frown crossed her face.

 

A garnet eyed woman fell to her knees in pain as she winced. The timeline she watched over which was ever so fragile at the moment started to shake and distort. All of her attempts to subdue the interlopers ended up failing. This wasn’t supposed to happen she had stopped the changes! The timeline should have started to heal itself not make itself worse. A look of determination crossed her face. The timeline must survive; to make sure the Queen’s dream became reality, even if it meant using a technique so forbidden that it would cost her more than just her life.

 

Finally a little girl sat on her bed waiting for her father to come home from work. Today she would be cured. Today her father had finally perfected the cure he had worked so long to create for her. Today would be the day that the power hidden away inside of her would be forced to the forefront and heal her fragile sick body. It was the sudden onset of the chest pain that caused the youth to take the serum her dear father provided her later that night without question as she believed the pain in her chest from earlier was a sign of her impending death.

 

Zoisite felt her body finally give in to the grievous wound that Nephrite had given her. The blood once warm and gushing now felt cool as it oozed out of her wounds. Anger coursed through his veins as he mechanically dropped his arms away from the wound. For a moment he just stared down at her unable to process that she was gone. While he didn’t have the shared history he had with Minako or Jadeite she had become a fast friend and someone that he never expected to lose like this.

 

He slowly got up from Usagi’s side his white uniform stained with her blood across his sleeves and most of the front. His hair fell limply across his face covering his eyes as he just stood there for a moment. The rapier in his blood soaked hand quivered wanting revenge to take its toll for her passing...to slice Nephrite open for killing the girl.

 

“Nephrite!” Zoisite’s blood roiled as he brought his rapier up in a quick swing to get Nephrite’s attention. “I was saving this for the bitch whore above but your senseless killing has proven you’re beyond redemption!” With energy coming from his anger the entire temperature of the area started to plummet as it dropped towards zero as Zoisite drew on his innate ability to attack.

 

“Grand Ice Dragon!” With a roar of its own the giant ice dragon construct shot out of the tip of the rapier. Whereas the normal Ice Dragon attack was large the new attack at least tripled in size. The body momentarily taking up Zoisite’s entire view so enormous it was. It snaked around towards the Shitennou of the West leaving ice all across the ground.

 

The only hint of surprise was the widening of Nephrite’s eyes. He managed to jump away from the still downed Princess with barely a scratch but what did hit him instantly froze. A frown crossed his face when he realized the tip of his boot had been frozen solid. It was only with a surge of electricity through his body that caused the ice to break apart in time for him to avoid the rest of the strike.

 

“Is that all?” Nephrite queried with a hint of superior smirk. “I’ve already killed a Moon Princess and my next target is an evil Queen yet all you can do is try to kill me with a giant ice construct?” With a negligent wave of his hand a shattering lightning attack destroyed the giant ice dragon. A small frown crossed his face as the ice didn’t just disappear but fell across the sky and into the ground. Instead of disappearing instantly it melted into the ground and started to spread across the surface of the park until the entire area around Nephrite was like a skating rink.

 

“Too slow…” Zoisite smirked as Nephrite realized too late that the dragon was not destroyed but had simply retreated into the ground. While in mid jump a giant maw came out from the ice surrounding Nephrite. A moment later the giant ice dragon’s maw snapped shut as the ice construct rose out of the ground the rest of the way. With a mighty roar the ice dragon proclaimed dominance over Nephrite.

 

“Zoisite...what happened?” Zoisite turned his attention to see Jadeite, Malachite, and Minako were up. His eyes widened as Jadeite placed his two fingers against Usagi’s neck. How the man hadn’t seen the girl was clearly dead was beyond him. Her eyes once full of life looked more like pieces of glass the spark completely gone and her skin bright white a contrast to the rich red color of her blood.

 

“Jadeite no!” The ice Shitennou attempted to stop his friend but it was too late. Jadeite’s face seized up when he didn’t feel a pulse.

 

Jadeite let out a shuddering breathe as he moved his hand across Usagi’s neck again attempting to ignore what his brain was already telling him. The girl was completely unresponsive and her skin while normally pale was deathly white. It was also completely cold. Any remaining warmth was gone. He just sat there in a daze. In the back ground he heard Zoisite yelling at him but nothing happened until Minako started shaking him.

 

“Jadeite…” Minako attempted while looking down at her friend. Tears were already starting to stream down her eyes. The possibility that when she saw Zoisite tending to Usagi the girl was in fact dying and Zoisite hadn’t been able to save her hadn’t even crossed her mind.

 

“She’s gone Minako.” Jadeite responded in a tight whisper. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Out of all of them she was the strongest...perhaps inexperienced but for Nephrite to be able to kill her…It was a scary thought.

 

“No…” Minako fell to her knees staring at her friend. While they had only met a few months ago she felt like they had been friends forever. First Serenity...now Usagi. She had truly failed everyone...without her true strength she had been useless.  She barely felt Malachite’s hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her but perhaps it was to steady himself.

 

“Pitiful...all of you are absolutely pathetic.” Nephrite’s voice came from the ice construct’s body. Not a moment later the ice that had completely encased Nephrite exploded outwards sending shards at the group that Zoisite had the presence of mind to deflect away from the group.

 

“One of your own dies and you all fall apart?” Nephrite questioned in a pitying tone. “I suppose it will be for the best if I finish you all off at once.”

 

“No...no I won’t...I won’t let you!” Minako screamed as she looked up at Nephrite with tears streaming down her face. “You’ve taken too much from us to ever be forgiven!”

 

Nephrite was about to respond when he felt an incoming attack...from Kunzite from all people. The normally calm man had an ugly sneer across his face. The attack drove the two into the air from the force that Malachite was using to attempt to break Nephrite’s guard with an upward sweep of his blade.

 

With a swish of his arm Nephrite met Kunzite’s...no wait. That look. A hint of surprise reached Nephrite when he realized who it was. A small smirk crossed his face. “I hadn’t expected to see you here of all places.”

 

“I pledged myself to her a long time ago and while I’m here you won’t hurt her ever again!” Malachite quickly withdrew his blade before he brought it back down to bear on the halberd in an attempt to break the guard and knock Nephrite out of the air.

 

“I see your obsession hasn’t waned since our last life...a shame you made a promise you’re too weak to keep.” With a twist of his halberd he broke Malachite’s upward stroke and twisted the pole around before hitting Malachite in the back with such force he rocketed into the ground.

 

That was the last straw...seeing Malachite fly into the ground with a resounding bang. Minako felt a power welling up inside of her. Something she hadn’t felt in a long time...something that before now had been hidden and unavailable. Without any further push she called the power and drew it out to wrap around her. Her entire body was enveloped in a golden light as she reached above her head with one hand, her nails glowing a bright white. “Breakthrough! Second Stage! Venus Star Power!”

 

In a burst of golden energy she once again became Sailor Venus. Her white dancer’s bodice knitted itself back together. Her primarily orange mini-skirt repaired itself completely flashing once as it reappeared mid-thigh. Finally an orange ornate ribbon blossomed across her chest. An orange jewel appearing in the middle of the ribbon holding it all together.

 

The golden chain once more wrapped around her body only now it was longer in length. In her right hand the glittering silver sword of the Silver Imperium Crystal appeared. The same blade she had used to put Beryl down the first time. It had finally come back to her. A little bit of shock overcame her grief as the memories of the past briefly flooded her brain.

 

It all passed within a moment as she parts of her past previously sealed became unlocked with the imbuing of the star power. Certain things made sense...but there were still many unanswered questions. Unfortunately she didn’t have time to ponder those thoughts. Right now she had a murdering sociopath to deal with.

 

With a grim look on her face she felt her tears dry up as her resolve grew. Right now she was Sailor Venus and Nephrite was a threat. With a super charged leap she flew through the air with her blade already mid swing. The glittering double edged silver sword had a magnificent guard to it that appeared like a rolling cloud with a heart in the middle. Two points like fangs came up about an inch on either side of the blade and another set curled inwards below to protect the user.

 

The surprise attack had so much power behind it that unlike before with Malachite, Venus, broke through the halberd’s pole like a hot knife through butter. The blade pierced through Nephrite’s shoulder.

 

Right after she felt the blow connect Venus whipped around in the air as she passed Nephrite and brought her guard up for a counter attack as she slowly descending back to earth.

 

Nephrite looked over at his arm in surprise. Where did her power come from? The girl suddenly had activated her second stage. Zero knew all about the Senshi’s power stages. Their weak base stage was all they had been dealing with up until now. Venus had just broken through to her second stage. That still left her with barely half of her power while he had access to the entire Earth’s power thanks to Zero. Still it could be bothersome...he himself didn’t quite know how to effectively wield all of his power.

 

With nary a thought he felt his body reknitting itself and his wounds healing. The momentary flash of pain faded away as he turned to Sailor Venus appearing as if he had never even been touched. A small smirk crossed his face at the look of surprise on her face. “Why Sailor Venus you appear surprised? Is something the matter?”

 

“How did you heal…so fast…?” Venus murmured under her breathe as she attempted to figure out what to do next. The first attack that actually hit him didn’t even faze him. Even powered up she didn’t have enough power...no she’d have to find a way.

 

“Well try hitting me a little harder next time then.” Nephrite responded in a mocking tone as he stared down at the girl imperiously.

 

“Venus Love Me Chain Encircle!” With a flash of her hand the glowing chain shot out like a bullet before wrapping around Nephrite’s leg. Using her moment of surprise, Sailor Venus, launched herself forward pulling on the chain to speed up in her attack.

 

Unfortunately Nephrite wasn’t caught off guard despite the speed. He instead used the incoming speed against Sailor Venus. He twisted his leg that was enclosed by the chain in a swift kick. Due to the second burst of speed added by Nephrite’s kick the attack missed the man. It didn’t even graze him and she felt an impact to her side as she flew by.

The unexpected counter attack caused her to lose her grip on her chain momentarily which caused an interruption in power that allowed Nephrite to free himself as she fell to Earth.

 

“We have to take him down while Minako has him distracted.” Zoisite was finally over the initial shock of his Grand Ice Dragon being defeated. Jadeite’s voice surprised him. The man was still on his knees by Usagi’s body but he was no longer looking at the dead girl. He was staring at Nephrite with a hatred that Zoisite had never before seen on Jadeite’s face. It was almost animalistic. The fury written all over his face was plain for all to see.

 

“Are you going to be alright?” Zoisite queried uncertainly.

 

“Just fine...once I tear him apart.” Jadeite snarled an ugly sneer settling across his face. He could feel the blood pumping through his body at a fierce pace. War drums were practically beating in his ears as his blood pressure rose. Unknowingly flames had started to roil across his body turning his rage into physical manifestation.

 

“Right...together then?” Zoisite questioned as he swung his rapier to fling the remaining bits of ice still clinging to the blade as he stared at Nephrite with a thoughtful look. Would they truly be able to take him down? His power had gone through the roof since they had last run into him. It was almost like he was on an entirely different level...something they couldn’t hope to match.

 

Jadeite just nodded before he flicked his black katana out and let his fire coat the blade. He would cut Nephrite down Shitennou or not. The Western Shitennou had crossed the line by killing Usagi. After he knocked him out of the air he’d cut the bastard apart one piece at a time and then he’d sew him back together just to do it again. A growl left his lips as he jumped forward with his fire coated blade in an overhead swing.

 

“Right then...I’ll go low...good planning session.” Zoisite muttered more to himself before he followed Jadeite into the air with his rapier glowing ice white ready to freeze Nephrite over on contact. They had lost too much today not to take Nephrite down.

 

Now that he had Zero’s entire power coursing through his system he didn’t even have to look as he created a lightning Halberd and easily batted Jadeite’s rage filled charge to the side. The two locked eyes for a moment. Nephrite calm and uncaring while Jadeite was completely furious.

 

Nephrite paused for a moment to take in Jadeite’s face before he swung his halberd across Jadeite’s chest as the flame Shitennou attempted one last clumsy block. Jadeite’s original swing had over extended him and didn’t leave him enough time to get a good guard up. The halberd landing a devastating blow to the Shitennou of the East as it slashed right through his blade. A trail of blood appeared across his upper body and across both biceps. Just as quickly the lightning sealed the sagged wound shut once more. It left behind the smell of burnt skin throughout the air.

 

Jadeite let out a scream of surprise as his black katana shattered in his hands. The jagged wound from the electricity cutting across his body was such a shock he lost all control over his body. Still smoking from the electrical burns he plummeted to the ground and landed with a solid thud. Smoke still rising up from the area he impacted. If not for his Shitennou powers he would have been completely eviscerated.

 

Zoisite joined him as his attempt to come from below had been countered with an electrically enhanced kick. The electricity burnt the Shitennou of the South all across his body and left the man plummeting to Earth knocked out by the strong electrical currents running throughout his body.

 

Nephrite eyed his work with a small smirk of appreciation. The Moon Princess was dead. There was no question about that. He had snuffed out the Moon Princess’s Guardian in a surprise attack. The blonde haired girl lay white and cold on the ground unmoving. The one that currently wore Kunzite’s face lay in the ground barely alive...not that he cared. That the man would even try to fool Minako was amusing to some extent. Jadeite and Zoisite while injured would survive if he decided to leave them...although they were causing issues to his plans they were still Shitennou.

 

That of course left...A quick dodge to the left and he avoided the girl’s errant attack. Tears were streaming down her face as she rocketed past Nephrite again. Good the girl was no longer fighting with her anger she was fighting with grief. Grief of seeing two more of her friends put into the ground.

 

Minako landed and with a snarl turned around and used her chain as a whip. “Love me chain!” With the cry the chain turned golden as it accelerated toward Nephrite in an attempt to wrap around him once more. An annoyed look crossed her face as Nephrite simply batted it away with his electrical Halberd.

 

This time she had the peace of mind to immediately drop the chain before Nephrite could send electrical current back down the chain unlike the first time they had met. That left only the holy sword as her main weapon. Any ranged attack would be blocked or deflected. With a surge of power she sent her light energy into the blade to strengthen it.

 

It was all or nothing. She was the only one still standing. With one final jump she put all of her newfound energy into this attack and channeled it into the blade. The entire length of the blade glowed a bright light that left a trail of energy behind it. Sailor Venus yelled out a war cry as she swept the blade length wise in an attempt to bisect the rogue Shitennou.

 

The poor girl attempted another strike but this time he was ready. Her enhanced speed was no longer a surprised nor her strength. Perhaps if she had put everything into her first strike she would have had a chance before he fully accessed the entire power of the Earth. With an electrically enhanced fist he swept his fist out ahead of her blade. While his arm completed the swing the wave of lightning continued onwards to land a blow right to her chest. The heavy impact sent her spiraling into the ground until she crashed next to Usagi’s lifeless body.

 

With a flourish he drew a bolt of lightning down from the heavens prepared to strike Sailor Venus down for good. It was the appearance of a man in black armor that momentarily stayed his hand. It was Lord Death of the Horsemen. Now what would he want here? His hand dropped to the side as he observed the man from above. For some reason he recognized the man. A frown crossed Nephrite’s face...could it possibly be.

 

Before Nephrite could even begin to decide what to do the man had reappeared by the Moon Princess grabbed an item and disappeared in a flash of black light. Whatever the man wanted...he had gotten it. A momentary frown crossed his face when he realized the Crystal that had been just out of reach by the Moon Princess.

 

It was unfortunately something he couldn’t worry about right now. For now he had the remainder of the Moon’s forces on Earth to remove. Once more he gathered a bolt of black lightning from the heavens and released it. The black and purple bolt curled toward Sailor Venus’s heart as he shouted out his attack. “Reaper’s Lightning!”

 

-Dark Kingdom- Earlier

 

Ami couldn’t believe it. Her scanners had gone insane. In the span of a few minutes the Moon Princess had appeared and subsequently her power source went dark soon after. The same with the Moon’s Guardian and now only four blips remained. Was that what had caused them all the intense pain they had felt moments before or had Nephrite used some technique darker than anything they knew of to kill the Princess. It was no secret they were all connected to their planets...perhaps if he had used something that disrupted the Moon Princess’s connection with her source of power. A frown crossed her face, for some reason that just didn’t feel right.

 

The 3-D map started to generate as her fingers flew across the keyboard. As the information generated the only one still active was the power source marked as Nephrite. It caused her to wonder where his power was coming from. Almost anyone else would have been at least a little depleted but Nephrite looked as if he had just stepped onto the battle field. The implications were downright frightening. A hand on her shoulder caused her to jump slightly in surprise.

 

“Relax, Ami, it’s just me.” Endymion murmured as he looked over her shoulder at the miniature 3-D map that Ami had up in their war room. A single eyebrow rose up as he came to the same conclusion as to what was occurring. “So the Moon Princess has been killed. Our most esteemed Queen Beryl will be quite cross that she wasn’t the one to do it.”

 

“So it would seem.” Ami responded although something about it just didn’t seem right. Unfortunately she didn’t have time to dwell on that fact. Her fingers flew across the keyboard as she hoped against hope that perhaps what they were looking for was still there. A power source that sprung eternal. If they could get their hands on it...well they would be able to depose Beryl and provide their true Queen a power source that would be able to restore her to her former glory.

 

“There! The Silver Crystal! That has to be it.” Ami cried in elation. What luck that Nephrite had unknowingly given them the key to the Earth’s destruction. “I have to go down there to retrieve it before Beryl realizes what happened!”

 

“No, as your leader it is my responsibility to go.” Endymion stated calmly as he studied the area where the fight was occurring. Unfortunately he was not familiar with Earth as he had only been down there once. The remainder of his time was normally spent here at the base of the Dark Kingdom.

 

“But Lord Death you can’t! Not when we can go for you!” Surprise registered in her voice. The man had only been to Earth once and that time he had a depilating attack. Some sort of gold radiance had shot out from the Earth and bathed him in its power. While Ami had devised a shielding device for his next visit it was still untested.

 

A tight smile crossed his lips. He understood her concerns. The last time had been a torturous experience where he was bombarded by false memories and lies by some unseen power. He had fought off the powerful attack but just barely. It had only been with Queen Metalia’s power that he been restored to his former self. “You girls are injured yet from whatever that attack was. It didn’t seem to injure me in any way. You yourself said the shield you created would work...besides...I’d have to test it one way or another if I’m going to pose as a college student...although I suppose with the Moon Princess eliminated that will no longer be necessary.”

 

Ami just shook her head at his absolute bullheadedness. The man could be such a handful but he was their Lord. “Very well but please note my reservations.”

 

“Noted...oh and don’t tell Rei or Makoto if you can avoid it.” Endymion flashed a warm smile before he phased out of existence leaving behind a worried Ami.

 

In a flash of black light he appeared on Earth. Instead of the debilitating pain he was expecting a calm feeling washed over him. It felt oddly good to be back on Earth. It was where he was originally from or so he was told by Luna. He tested the shield that Ami had devised by creating a black circle of energy. Satisfied that the shield held he made his way towards the distance light show he knew to be the battle between Nephrite and Sailor Venus.

 

A resounding crack alerted him that the fight was over. It wouldn’t be long until Beryl sent her dogs around looking over the battlefield for scraps of energy to claim so he would have to make this fast. With a final leap he arrived on the battlefield to witness the aftermath. It looked like a war zone. Most of the landscape was torn asunder in giant chunks of earth or still partially frozen from Zoisite’s power.

 

Immediately he identified the downed Shitennou, Sailor Venus, the Moon Princess’s Guardian, and finally the Moon Princess. He thought he would feel some sort of hatred for the girl for what she had done to his people but there was nothing. A glittering diamond caught his attention...there it was the Imperium Crystal.

 

In a flash of movement he stood by the crystal with a slight frown on his face. Black? It wasn’t supposed to be black. Everything screamed in his head that it should be white. Endymion never noticed the golden pulse that escaped him. A power he didn’t even acknowledge calling out for help.

 

With no time to dwell on the issue he picked up the crystal and pocketed the gem before phasing back to the Dark Kingdom’s headquarters underneath the old palace of the Moon Kingdom. He always felt it was a fighting place to launch their attacks from. A self-satisfied smirk rested easily across his face...well at least until he came back into the main room of the Horsemen’s quarters.

 

Waiting for him with no small amount of anger stood Makoto and Rei. Even Luna looked perturbed although she had been on assignment to spy on Beryl so that could be anything. Finally Ami was looking at anything but Mamoru, guilt written all over her face. Well this was it...a soft sigh blew the bangs up out of his face for a moment.

 

“And just where have you been?” Rei accused with anger and annoyance radiating through.

 

“Earth.” Endymion replied in an attempt to downplay the issue he just kept walking before Rei could respond. The smile came back full force as he watched his love sputter in surprise that he just admitted to her what he had been up to.

 

Makoto was slightly amused by her Lord’s straight forward answer and it showed with a corner smirk and slightly raised eyebrow. That didn’t mean she was still annoyed about being left out. “You could’ve at least taken me. I was looking forward to pounding some Moon scum.”

 

“That will no longer be necessary.” Endymion smiled as he revealed his prize that had been stored away. The black crystal in his hands one moment before he tossed it over to Ami. The surprised girl had managed to grab the crystal before it fell to the ground before sending a glare his way which he promptly ignored. “Our esteemed ex-Shitennou, Nephrite, has killed the Moon Princess, her Guardian, and was finishing off Sailor Venus while I was there.”

 

A silence fell over the remaining Horsemen at the knowledge that Sailor Venus was in the midst of losing her life. While they knew it was a possibility it was still hard to hear. Makoto frowned slightly while Ami turned her attention to the crystal that Lord Death had presented her. Rei clenched her fists in anger...that Nephrite would pay.

 

Luna cleared her throat in an attempt to gather their attention once more. While she too was angered at the loss of Sailor Venus she would deal with that later. Losses were something she expected and to complete their mission they may yet lose another member of their team. For now she had information to provide. “It seems that Beryl is planning on removing us from the equation.”

 

“Pfft...And how would she ever do that?” Makoto responded flippantly as she waved her hand unconcerned. “We can take her down in our sleep.”

 

Luna huffed a little at Makoto’s brush off but it was nothing she wasn’t used to. “She is working with another benefactor that we’re unaware of. It certainly isn’t Kunzite and the rest of the Shitennou have left her. There are no other high ups in her command we know of.”

 

“So she has another friend. Just one more to kill on our way to the top.” Makoto espoused once more with a confident smirk. Ami meanwhile shook her head in amusement at Makoto’s antics before a small frown crossed her face while studying the black crystal.

 

“How bad could it be though?” Rei couldn’t place it but something about this seemed familiar...perhaps she had seen it before in the great fire? A glimpse of the future or a possible future?

 

“Her ally informed her the interloper was taken care of for the time being. I must assume they mean the Phaeton Knight.” Luna felt something nagging in the back of her skull. Something important regarding the word Phaeton but it was no use. Whatever it was it was sealed away and she knew it was bad. The rest of the group also seemed to almost draw back from the word.

 

The thought process was broken by Ami crying out in surprise as she finally confirmed what she thought to be true. “We’ve been had.”

 

“What do you mean?” Endymion asked with a hint of concern growing in the pit of his stomach. It did not bode well for them if Ami had discovered something wrong with the crystal. Had his gut feeling back on Earth when he picked up the crystal been correct?

 

“This crystal is a fake…” Ami let the exclaims of surprise die down before continuing. “While it appears on the surface to be the crystal we were after it is in fact a crystal created to find the true Silver Crystal. I can tell from the creation process that Kunzite was the one that had a hand in creating it.”

 

“So that means...that Princess…” Makoto growled out as she clenched her fist. Of course why hadn’t they thought of this before now? It was well known that the last Shitennou had a penchant for clones. Sometimes you didn’t even know if he was a clone himself.

 

“It must have been a clone created by Kunzite.” Rei finished in a tight voice. So that meant that there was still a Moon Princess out there. The slight relief that had come knowing that the bond she shared with Endymion was no longer threatened came roaring back to life. Ever since the great fire started showing her the possibilities of that event occurring she had become fiercely protective of him.

 

Endymion went silent as he stared at the crystal in Ami’s hand with a thoughtful expression on his face. So perhaps that is why he hadn’t felt anything when he saw the Princess dead. He thought he would have felt some sort of elation but it didn’t give him any kind of feeling. “So the Moon Princess is still out there. The true one I mean.” His voice breaking the silence that had fallen over the room.

 

“Che...just means I’ll get my chance to bust her face in.” Makoto concluded with a huff.

 

“But we’ve lost our lead if Nephrite killed the Moon’s Guardian.” Rei countered Makoto’s statement before looking over to Ami who hadn’t said anything since revealing the information. The blue haired genius was busy typing away on her minicomputer with a look of concentration on her face. Rei was about to say something when the bluenette let out a cry of victory.

 

“Just as I thought! This crystal was developed to find the real crystal! With this information I can map out the probable locations of the Moon Princess!” Ami’s fingers flew across the keyboard to her minicomputer as she interfaced with the information hidden in the crystal. Lines of code flew across the screen as Ami seemed to analyze it in mere seconds.

 

Across the main monitor little dots of white popped up on the screen. At first it was only a few dots but soon they started to fill the entire screen. Ami zoomed out as the white dots took over more and more of the screen. Finally after a minute the white dots stopped but Ami’s hands kept flying across the screen.

 

Three red circles finally enclosed around the white dots in a fairly even pattern. Ami turned away from the computer with a gleam in her eye that the other’s affectionately referred to as her professor mode. She cleared her throat momentarily before pointing to the main monitor. “Right so, the white dots above are all instances where the crystal picked up possible instances of the Silver Crystal being detected.”

 

Once she was sure she had the entire attention of the group she preceded. “And the red circles are the two school districts and the one university that encompasses that area.”

 

“Well then I say it’s time to make a move. Beryl is getting close to the edge and if she is truly looking to take us out it’ll be safer to leave the Dark Kingdom’s base anyway.” Endymion declared as he observed the data up on the main screen.

 

“Agreed.” Luna chimed in as she too observed the information. Clearly the Moon Princess was hiding somewhere in the Azabu-Juuban district of Tokyo. It would be hard work but Beryl wasn’t making any progress and Queen Metalia was growing impatient.

 

“So we split up obviously but how do we do this?” Makoto asked as she too studied the map.

 

“Well Endymion will clearly have to be the university student at Keio...he’s the only one that looks old enough.” Rei smirked as she playfully poked at Endymion the Lord of Death just shook his head in amusement at his love.

 

“So that leaves Juuban Municipal High School and Nishimachi International School.” Ami noted as she pointed to the remaining two options. The International School while closer to Keio University had much less activity compared to Juuban.

 

“I call Nishimachi!” Rei blurted out before a slight blush crossed her face and she looked away from the other four staring at her with undisclosed looks of amusement.

 

Endymion shot a knowing smirk at Rei before commenting just to tease her a little bit. “Well I guess we could always room together...but I don’t know...I wouldn’t want to impose…”

 

“You’re such a jerk sometimes.” Rei muttered as she continued to attempt to hide the fact she was blushing behind an intense fascination with the map that Ami still had up.

 

“Well I guess we’ll leave the love birds together...looks like it’ll be you and me in Juuban, Ami, hope you can get us in without too many eyebrows being raised.” Makoto stated as she pounded her right fist into the open palm of her left hand in determination. This was going to be fun. She’d be the first one to find the Moon Princess and start repaying her early for what her people did.

 

“I suppose since I wasn’t included in the plans I shall be the go between and act as the roaming look out.” Luna stated with a put upon sigh.

 

“You can stay with us Luna.” Rei offered with an affectionate smile.

 

“No no...It’s alright. I will stay with Ami and Makoto.” Luna quickly responded before she got trapped in the awkward situation that would be living with Rei and Endymion.

 

Makoto chuckled. “You’re saying that you don’t want to be stuck in the apartment while Endymion and Rei get it on.”

 

“You’re so crass.” Ami stated with a roll of her eyes at the childish antics of her comrade.

 

“What!” Rei practically screeched in a combination of embarrassment and sputtering outrage. So what if it was technically true…

 

“Oh get over it. It isn’t like it is any kind of secret. Anyway I’m getting ready to go.” Makoto waved off Rei’s outburst with an amused smirk. Rei was so easy to rile up.

 

Endymion just shook his head in amusement as he too left the main room to prepare for the upcoming mission. Rei followed Endymion into their shared chambers a moment later still too embarrassed to face Ami, Makoto, or Luna at the moment.

 

Ami turned her head to Luna as the two observed the patterns of the Imperium Crystal. “Do you think we’ll find her?” Ami queried softly a bit of self-doubt entering her voice.

 

“We have no choice. If the Moon Princess isn’t stopped now all will be for naught and the Moon Kingdom will rise again.” Luna stated with conviction and a determined look on her face. “We will finish her for not only Earth but the rest of the planets that the Moon snuffed out with their needless aggression.”

 

“I certainly hope so…” Ami murmured once more a small hint of doubt entering her voice.

 

-Earth-

 

Sailor Venus lay on her back next to Usagi’s body. Her eyes briefly flickered to Nephrite and the impending lightning attack that she knew would finish her. So this is where it ended. Her powers were quickly diminishing unable to sustain the amount of damage that Nephrite had dealt out. Even the boost in power from her breakthrough failed in the end.

 

Venus coughed up a little bit of blood from an earlier hit. Night was finally setting and the moon was peeking out from behind the clouds overhead. It was a full moon...yet it appeared the moon wasn’t with them tonight. Ironic that the very thing she failed was above her now radiant in its unearthly glow.

 

Any further thoughts were erased as she let out a scream of pain as her body was wracked by the reaper’s lightning attack. The black bolt entered her heart and started to cause her body to go haywire. Her heart started to beat like crazy as it attempted to keep up with the rapid fire nerve impulses.

 

With a final scream Sailor Venus’s heart finally gave out from the attack. Her body constricting unnaturally as if in one last futile attempt to get away from the Reaper’s Lightning. Her glassy unseeing eyes staring up at the Moon and her mouth slightly agape in a silent scream.  

 

Nephrite felt the last bits of life leave Sailor Venus. Using Reaper’s Lightning had been an excellent choice. The attack was both able to end her life before she could put up a fight and kept her from possibly receiving her planet’s full power. “If you had been able to do that I may have been in trouble.” Nephrite murmured. Now to turn his attention to the Shitennou. With the agents of the Moon out of the way it would be only a matter of time before they saw things his way.

 

A/N:

  
My my...so I just killed Usagi, Minako, and the fake Moon Princess. I hope no one is too angry with that. I shall be carrying on of course. Bwhaha.

VChanny : Hope this chapter confirms some of your guesses or at least solidifies them. I won’t reveal the plot but you certainly are on the right track.

Ginsan: Glad I didn’t cause an issue with trapping Jordan but I needed him away so he couldn’t swing in to save the day any time soon.

Sage McGavin: F indeed.

Catspirit: I promise we’ll get there. Just remember it has taken me 10 chapters to get Zoisite on their side soooo yeah it is gonna be a while yet. Hopefully this chapter gives some more hints about Pluto’s end game and Malachite.


	13. For Whom the Bell Tolls

A/N: Well I think I have everyone’s attention. Hope you didn’t think Usagi and Minako would just somehow come back this chapter. They are truly well and dead but I think I have something up my sleeve that is going to surprise everyone...well except VChanny...she seems to have a pretty good idea where I’m going with things.

 

Chapter 13: For Whom The Bell Tolls

 

There was an intense throbbing that felt like someone was driving a stake with a hammer into his freaking head. That was the first thing that Jadeite felt when he awoke. The moment he opened his eyes everything came rushing back to him. Nephrite! Where was the bastard?

 

A glance to his left confirmed that Zoisite was also up and aware again. The younger Shitennou looking a little worse for the wear but he had pushed himself onto his knees with his rapier.

 

Minako’s scream drew his attention just in time to watch her arc her back one last time before she fell silent. He felt her energy drain away until he couldn’t even feel a ping. She was gone. It took his mind a moment to catch up. Nephrite had killed three people tonight and he had done so with impunity. A rage burning in Jadeite started to spread outwards as power locked away long ago built up.

 

A glance to the side confirmed that Zoisite had come to the same conclusion as well. The younger Shitennou looked as if he wanted to pummel Nephrite but felt helpless to stop Nephrite. Well no longer! Nephrite would die tonight. With a roar of anger, Jadeite, grabbed onto the power that seemed to pulsate faster and faster as if beating with his heart. Steam started to pour off his skin as he drew out the energy. Heat billowing off his frame in waves as he felt Zoisite reaching the same pinnacle.

 

“Shatter!” They yelled in unison.

 

“Second stage! Purifying Flames of the East!” Jadeite yelled as he felt the power well up inside of him and began to take form. The multiple lacerations and burns disappeared as his body healed. His body was momentarily enveloped in a flame that burned a bright white before it burst apart leaving a completely healed Jadeite. Once more his white dress uniform and white dress pants were crisp and clean. The black shoes and black buttons were shining once more. The red accent line that wrapped around his collar before coming down the front of the tunic was darker this time more of a blood red.

 

While his black katana had been shattered by Nephrite, Jadeite now had enough purifying power to handle the demon blade that Beryl had attempted to ensnare him with. Jadeite brought his hands together in a clap before he slowly drew them apart. The white blade of the demon sword Dreadnought appeared wrapped in flames for a moment before he gripped the blade with his hand.

 

A slight grimace crossed his face as the blade immediately attempted to control him. With his new found power he was able to subdue the blade’s will with his own. Jadeite gave the blade an experimental swing as he eyed Nephrite. There would be no more chances for Nephrite to make amends for his actions.

 

“Second stage! Icy Winds of the South!” Zoisite yelled as he felt his powers reaching out from within. First a layer of frost covered his body. Next his entire body disappeared from view as a dense fog surrounded his person. After a few moments it dissipated leaving behind a fully healed Zoisite. Much like Jadeite his uniform was a crisp white dress shirt and white dress pants with a silver blue accent line running around his collar and down the front of his shirt. Black dress shoes and a black belt completed the ensemble.

 

A second rapier had appeared in his left hand. Zoisite’s original rapier was composed of a thin silver blade that attached to a silver guard that covered his entire hand. The guard had an intricate design embedded into the silver of a lone mountain. If one got close enough there was even little prints of snow around the mountain. Zoisite’s second rapier was a mirror image in design to his original but instead of silver it was composed of crystal and platinum. The blade glittered under the light of the moon from above.

 

“Do you really think your access to half of your full power is really enough to defeat me?” Nephrite questioned with a haughty tone. “If you two leave now with the Princess Venus’s little loyal retainer I won’t punish you any more for your insolence.”

 

“Sounds like the second Shitennou of the West just gave himself a promotion.” Jadeite responded in a sarcastic tone.

 

Zoisite hummed in agreement as he pondered over Nephrite’s words for a moment regarding Malachite. “Perhaps then we should mete out his punishment before Kunzite finds out about his little faux pas?”

 

“As long as I get the final strike.” Jadeite responded as he concentrated his powers on his blade. A black flame sprung up across the white katana and engulfed most of his arm. Demonic fire was something that he unlocked with his new powers. While his base fires were all of the purifying variety the demonic fires weren’t so easy to dispel. The only downside of course was the mental toll of holding back the influences the flames contained but with the new access to his second stage powers it would be no issue if they wrapped this up in short order.

 

“Then you provide frontal assault and I’ll slow him down.” Zoisite already had a plan in mind. Something that perhaps Nephrite did not remember. Then again from what he could tell the man had been poisoned by the power of Earth. Perhaps Jadeite was right and he was beyond saving. ”Remember to keep him away from Malachite until he recovers.”

 

“Just cover me.” Jadeite growled the demonic energies exerting their influence through his voice and actions. Despite containing the energies from a complete take over it still had enough to affect his thoughts and actions if he wasn’t careful.

 

“Are you two done with your little tea party?” Nephrite queried with a small amount of amusement in his tone. He had let the two attempt to find a strategy since it appeared neither would be backing down. He supposed it shouldn’t have been that much of a surprise. In a flicker of motion he appeared above the two his lightning halberd already sparking as it came down upon them.

 

Jadeite brought his blade overhead to block the downward strike and for a moment felt a push of the electricity down his arm. With a snarl he redoubled his efforts for produce the demonic flames and a moment later forced Nephrite to withdraw lest the demonic fire grab hold of his body.

 

It was in the moment that Nephrite was unguarded that Zoisite struck. His twin rapiers flew at a speed that even Nephrite aided by the very nature of his element couldn’t block completely. While Zoisite could not land a killing blow he managed to cut Nephrite all across his body.

 

Nephrite growled in annoyance before withdrawing from the two by jumping back to gain some distance. It didn’t help as the moment Zoisite let up, Jadeite replaced him. Nephrite let fly a bolt of lightning in an attempt to keep the man back but it did little good. This could be an issue. “Why must you persist in defending the Moon and their allies?” He all but screamed.

 

“Because they’re our friends!” Jadeite responded in an angered tone. “If you could lock that bedamned spirit of Earth away from poisoning your mind any further maybe you’d realize that you’re not fighting Queen Serenity anymore! You just killed the King’s future bride.”

 

“She’d have turned him...he’d have become nothing more than a puppet ruler if she had gotten her hooks into him. The Earth would have become the new seat of power for the Moon and we would be under their heel once more. Don’t you understand? I’ve saved you all!” A certain tone of fanaticism leaked into Nephrite’s voice as that same look spread to his face. “I saved our King and the people of Earth from further oppression. Why can’t you understand? I did it all for you!”

 

Jadeite brought his white blade down in an overhead slash which was caught against the lightning halberd. A look of intense concentration came over Jadeite’s face as he attempted to push more power through the blade to break the guard. “You say this with such certainty! Did you perhaps read this in the stars?” He mocked with a tone of sarcasm in his voice.

 

With a surprise attack from the side once more, Zoisite, managed to once again score a flurry of quick strikes on Nephrite. A frown marring his face at the entire thought process of Nephrite. The man had truly fallen beyond what even he thought was possible. Madness had overtaken Nephrite and it appeared there would be no talking him out his views. “Tell me Nephrite...did you regret any of this. Even a little?”

 

Nephrite grunts as he forced Zoisite back with a bolt of lightning. “Of course not! I have seen the future. Zero has provided me the ability to see ahead. If we can save the King without the Moon’s help we can establish a new Kingdom. One in which the Earth is the seat of the new Golden Millennium. The other planets will fall beneath our power!”

 

“You’re absolutely mad! You want to replace the Dark Kingdom with the same. An iron fist covered by a piece of silk is still an iron fist!” Zoisite responded with some hint of desperation as he attempted to get his point across.

 

“He’s beyond hope...we’ve got to finish him now…” Jadeite started to gather up energy to take out Nephrite when the man surprised him with an attack he knew all too well.

 

“And you’ve both proven to me that your devotion to the Moon Kingdom is absolute and unmoving. I’ll wipe you from the board just like I wiped the other pawns off the board that stood in the way of my mission.” With a black bolt of lightning gathered he let it loose the moment he had sight on Jadeite’s heart. “Reaper’s Lightning!”

 

Right before the bolt would have reached Jadeite a body came between the two. Malachite’s back arched as the bolt pierced his body. The man let out a shocked scream of pain as the last of the energy curled into his body around his heart. It was only reflex that caused Jadeite to catch the man.

 

“Malachite!” Jadeite yelled in surprise as his eyes went wide in surprise. At least he had some presence of mind to cut off the demonic flames power so as not to injure the man further. The white katana clattered to the ground. In the back drop Zoisite continued to put pressure on the ever slowing Nephrite.

 

“Adonis…” The large man coughed as he found himself unable to pick himself up from the life ending injury he could already feel his blood pressure rising as his heart started pounding out of sync. “My real name is Adonis…”

 

“But I thought you were the fifth Shitennou?” The moment he said it though Jadeite realized that it wasn’t the case. With more than half of his memories back he remembered more than enough about Kunzite. Kunzite’s entire family had been wiped out by the Dark Kingdom. There was no way there ever could have been a fifth Shitennou.

 

“I had hoped to use it until you got your memories back…” Adonis coughed out a little bit of blood as he let himself lean into Jadeite. “I wanted to get close to Minako...I thought perhaps…” He chuckled mirthlessly. “So silly but I had hoped to trick her into loving me by taking the appearance of her former lover...I didn’t even get to read her fortune.”

 

Jadeite could only hold the man for the final few moments before life left his eyes. He couldn’t believe it. While he knew that people from the other planets had to have been reborn it had never occurred to him that any of them could possibly remember their past lives let alone access their past powers. Then again...Jordan clearly did so why shouldn’t someone else gain the same access?

 

Jadeite took a moment to lay Adonis on the ground on his back so he could at least see the stars above. Another dead...because they weren’t strong enough. It ended right here and right now. Nephrite would fall tonight by his blade if it was the last thing that he did. With a fresh surge of anger coursing through his veins he reactivated the demonic flames around the blade as he picked up the white katana.

 

Zoisite saw Jadeite rushing in for the kill. Hopefully by killing Nephrite they would reseal Zero and next time Nephrite was reborn he wouldn’t be with Zero’s influence. With a snap of his fingers he activated the ice he had been placing in Nephrite with each little cut.

 

For a moment he watched with some amusement as Nephrite started having issues with movement. It already looked as if he was wading through water with how slow his response time was. “You seem to be slowing down? Something wrong?” Zoisite calmly questioned his fellow Shitennou.

 

With a roar Nephrite attempted to move his arms...then his legs. In fact he couldn’t move anything. Even surging electricity through his body only ended up shocking him. Every moment the restrictions became worse and worse. Parts of his body seemed to stop responding completely. Nephrite shot a glare at Zoisite as he demanded an answer. “What did you do to me?”

 

“Why Nephrite...have you truly forgotten...unlike the rest of you I don’t have overwhelming power to defeat my enemies.” His normally calm tone turned condescending as he flicked his rapiers which both sent small beads of water off the tips. “Every single cut more and more of the rapier’s water got into your system. Every single cut caused my powers to saturate your blood to the point it was circulating throughout your body. Then with a snap I froze it all in place which in turn frozen you in place.”

 

“You Bas-” Nephrite’s scream was cut off as Jadeite’s blade caught him across the throat. The demonic fire quickly spread across the entirety of Nephrite’s body. The lightning element resisted for a moment before it gave way before the fires. In another second his entire body became a blazing fire as the demonic flames consumed his entire body.

 

Jadeite tamped the demonic flames down until he was able to reseal the blade. A look of regret crossed his face but only for a moment once he looked back across the field to see four people, three of which he held as friends, and two very dear to him, dead.

 

“So what do we do now?” Zoisite took stock of the carnage. Just as Jadeite resealed his blade, the twin rapiers turned into mist as he let them disappear as he no longer required them. “Malachite…”

 

“Adonis.” Jadeite interrupted him softly. “His name was Adonis.”

Zoisite just accepted it as fact. Now that he had recovered over half of his memories he didn’t doubt for a second the man parading around as the fifth Shitennou had lied. Everything was becoming clearer as the memories started to integrate themselves back in. Even with all of his memories much of his past was still left in a haze.

 

Since Jadeite seemed to be lost in a haze he took it upon himself to do what he knew had to be done. First he went over to Minako and kneeled down over her body. Just one last time he touched his hand to her throat and closed his eyes. With a tendril of energy he reached out to try and find any remaining energy...something to confirm she was still alive and fighting to live.

 

Nothing. Not even a spark of life left. Zoisite let out a pent up breath he didn’t realize he had been holding in. Suddenly he felt cold and clammy. This was really it. With a touch of his finger to the jewel in her ribbon he watched as the remaining energy holding her transformation powers left her. The Senshi uniform dissipated into ribbons of energy leaving behind her normal out of school wear. A yellow t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. They complimented her hair nicely. A frown crossed his face. Not that it mattered any longer.

 

“Come on Jadeite. No one can learn about us. Not who we were. This is all going to just be a tragic accident.” Zoisite attempted to verbally prod his friend into action.

 

“But it wasn’t an accident...it was a god damn massacre. Why shouldn’t the people know! Wouldn’t it be better for Usagi’s parents and Minako’s parents to know they died trying to protect the ones they loved then just some random happenstance befalling them.” Jadeite whispered out harshly.

 

“Who are you doing this for? Their parents or yourself.” Zoisite responded clinically as he moved over towards the Princess.

 

“So you think we should just leave them here as victims then?” Jadeite practically sneered as he resisted the urge to deck Zoisite. Sometimes he hated the man especially when he got like this.

 

Zoisite quirked an eyebrow at Jadeite as if considering what to say to his emotionally charged friend. He let out a sigh as he spoke. “You’re projecting your feelings onto them. How do you think they’d feel if they found out their daughter had powers they couldn’t comprehend? Or even better how would they feel if they learned their daughters for years or months in the case of Usagi carried this burden alone. That they felt the need to hide it and carry it on their own, protecting the city from dangers that their parents could never imagine. They’d feel like a failure of a parent. They’d feel like they had failed them and they were powerless to stop it from happening. At least this way it was a tragic accident.”

 

“So what it’s just easier to deal with? It being labeled an accident just makes it all better and we go about with our lives just accepting that they died?” Jadeite questioned harshly causing the Ice Shitennou to recoil slightly from the venom in Jadeite’s voice.

 

“In a way...yes. It is something that they can talk to other people about. It is a grief that they can share and others can understand. How could you relate to someone if they told you their daughter died as a superhero fighting mysterious space invaders?” Zoisite pointed out in a gentle tone as not to set Jadeite off any further. “Yes people could sympathize with them but it’s hard to empathize with something you don’t understand. The closest they could get would possibly be someone that lost someone in the military. I’d rather give them a tragedy that they can understand.”

 

“Fine...fine we’ll spoon feed them a lie then. We’ll let them wonder for the rest of their days why it had to be their daughter that died instead telling them that they died trying to save the world.” Jadeite retorted bitterly a frown crossing his features as he noticed that Zoisite seemed satisfied with the answer and was heading over to the Princess of the Moon.

 

Despite his protests Jadeite found himself mechanically going through the motion as he deactivated Mal-wait Adonis’s transformation. It was almost a bit of a shock to see the man’s true features. As his power up melted away he shrunk in height and his broad shoulders dropped away leaving behind a lean young sandy haired man that resembled Minako to a certain extent. So that was it...he must have been from Venus. The name was a give away but this confirmed it.

“Perhaps next time you’ll be able to find your own Princess, Adonis.” Jadeite murmured before he stood up to see Zoisite about to take care of Usagi. He found himself calling out before he could even ponder his decision. “No!”

 

Once he realized Zoisite was looking at him strangely, Jadeite, continued on. “No...I’ll take care of Usagi. I knew her best. I should...I mean...she’d feel most comfortable...right...just let me do it.” He finally just gave up on explaining it and made his way over to Usagi.

 

He sensed more than saw Zoisite move away a little bit. Probably to give him space which he mentally thanked Zoisite for. His voice came out as a broken whisper unbidden tears forming in the corner of his eyes. “Hey there Usa...well I guess you were right. This whole thing got you killed.” A choking sob that ended in a chuckle came out. “I didn’t mean to get you killed Princess...I swear I never expected it to end like this. I guess it just never occurred to me you’d die.”

 

“I’ll be stronger next time...next time I promise I won’t let anything keep me from saving you.” He looked over Usagi for a moment longer wondering if he would ever see her again. If she truly was a construct of the Moon to defend the Princess then she wouldn’t be reborn. It would mean that she was nothing more than an automaton given a mission and enough spark to fool people into thinking she was real.

 

Jadeite just couldn’t accept that as the answer she had to be real. Perhaps not in this lifetime but one day he just knew he’d see her again. It was a spur of the moment decision but before he left her he removed the silver sword that dangled from her neck. After staring at it as if it had the answers to all of his questions for more than a minute he finally put it on around his neck.

 

While Usagi was gone he’d carry a little part of her wherever he went. A reminder to himself about the cost of failure and what his weakness had caused. “Never again. I will never again let any harm befall those that I care for because I was too weak to stop the enemy or hesitated because I thought I could bring them back.”

 

“Ready to go?” Zoisite finally asked once he was sure that Jadeite had said his peace. It was a terrible thing to leave them on the battlefield but it wasn’t like they could just bring dead bodies back to their apartment.

 

The normally sarcastic Shitennou that was Jadeite simply nodded once not trusting himself to speak. In a flicker of light the two disappeared from the scene. Where they had entered with five and only two left alive that night. It was a sobering thought. To realize that not every fight would end in a victory from near death.

 

Soon after the two remaining Shitennou disappeared from the scene the police finally appeared.

 

Jadeite’s apartment -

 

Jadeite just sat there motionless on his sofa staring at the TV in the dark. The white washed hues of blue and white provided enough light...or at least enough for him not to bother turning on a light. Zoisite was who knows where but probably in his room. It really didn’t matter to Jadeite. Artemis was even laying on the sofa next to Jadeite and he didn’t care. Instead he just absently stroked Artemis’s head while staring at the TV.

 

_“Four people found dead at Yoyogi Koen Park two days ago have been identified. These are the first mysterious deaths since the creatures that appeared a few months ago at a charity walk. The Police Department has not commented at this time but reports from people there at the time of the deaths reported monstrous creatures in the area.” The reporter read through the story in a borderline excited voice. Pictures of the four appeared on the screen._

 

Jadeite almost felt sick...the speculations had run the gambit from a coven of witches trying to bring the devil back to life with Adonis as the vassal to a group of druggies chasing their next high. If these people only knew what had been sacrificed for them. He found himself just staring at the stock photo of Usagi that they must have acquired from her school. She had changed a lot in the last few months. The photo on the screen looked like a little girl whereas she had turned into a young woman by the time she died.

 

_“The young man approximately twenty two years old had a passport from the United States on him, identifying him, as Adam Neff. We are still waiting to hear back from the U.S. Embassy with confirmation. The two girls found together were identified as 16 year old Minako Aino a dual citizen of Japan and France along with 16 year old Usagi Tsukino a Japanese citizen.” The reporter seemed to frown slightly at the next part of the report before he proceeded onwards._

 

_“Finally it appears the last girl has just been identified as Jane Doe. No identification was found on her and no one has come forward with information relating to her. Authorities ask that if you know this girl or have any information on what took place that you contact your local authorities.” The reporter ended before turning the news over to weather._

 

A small snort left Jadeite’s nose at the request. ‘Contact the authorities to do what exactly?’ He pondered to himself as he just sat there unmoving just watching the TV with unseeing eyes. Absently he played with the small sabre pendent that he had taken off of Usagi. While it no longer held the power it used to he found it comforting.

 

“What do we do now?” Artemis finally broke the silence that had fallen over the household for the last two days. The cat had shown up sometime after the first day. No one had bothered to tell him but then again neither Jadeite nor Zoisite had been really thinking too clearly.

 

With a shrug, Jadeite, turned his head slightly to the cat. He honestly had no idea. While Jadeite figured Zoisite was brooding and maybe come up with some plan, he to be honest, was content doing nothing. “The Moon Princess is dead, Usagi’s dead, and Minako’s dead. What do you want me to do?” Jadeite queried in a hollow tone.

 

“There are still the other the other Senshi and Kunzite to free from the Dark Kingdom...and you still have to find the King of Earth.” Artemis offered with little enthusiasm even as he suggested it. Ever since Minako had died he had been directionless. There was no longer a real reason for him to stay around but he did so out of the comfort of familiarity he had with Jadeite.

 

“Why bother? Even if we freed the Senshi, what would we tell them?” Jadeite began in a mocking tone. “Something like “So sorry for getting you back but oh your Princess is dead and so is Sailor Venus. Good luck if you need anything just give us a ring?” Yeah that sounds like a great life. Better if we just put them down like we did with Nephrite.”

 

“You mean actually kill them?” Artemis’s tone wavered at the very idea that Jadeite had introduced. It wasn’t something he had thought about before and it certainly was not something he could agree with.

 

Jadeite eyed the cat with a certain amount of disdain. “Better to kill them and let them be reborn so they never know their failure then awaken them just to throw it in their faces. Do you even understand what that’d do to all of them?” A sneer crossing his face for a moment. “Sailor Mercury would have a breakdown and probably work herself to death. Sailor Jupiter would just throw herself into battle until she got killed and Sailor Mars well she always was the wild card but my guess is sit before the fire until she starves to death. Would you really want to do that to them?”

 

“No…” Artemis frowned as he stared at the TV as the news report continued to run. The white noise from the TV was a soothing distraction to the issue at hand. “But can we really do it...I mean could you go through with it?”

 

“What don’t think you could suffocate one of them by sleeping on their face in the middle of the night?” Jadeite chuckled mirthlessly at his own macabre joke.

 

The small cat threw the man a frown at his deflection of the question. “I mean could you do it?”

 

An answer wasn’t forthcoming. At least not immediately. It was one thing to talk about it but it was another to actually do it. Then again what did it really matter? He already had Nephrite’s blood on his hands. What was a little more at this point? Perhaps he wouldn’t be reborn after this but did it really matter? If he could save the rest from the pain of knowing they had failed was his life really that important. Besides it wasn’t as if it was guaranteed Usagi would be reborn.

 

Finally right as Artemis was about to move on and let the question die, Jadeite suddenly answered.

 

“I took an oath when I first became a Shitennou that I would protect the people of the East.” Jadeite stated thoughtfully as he had finally come up with an answer for the cat he felt appropriate. “While they are technically reborn souls from the Moon Kingdom they were reborn here in the old lands of the East. I will treat them as I would treat any Eastern citizen. While I will not allow them to be a threat...I refuse to bring them undue harm. Purifying them wouldn’t be anything less than torture. To have them learn they weren’t there to protect their Princess would destroy them. If I have to kill them to send them on to their next lives, I will.”

 

Artemis nodded as he went silent unsure where to go from here. The situation wouldn’t right itself alone but he didn’t see any way to proceed forward. There just wasn’t a way to bring anyone back from the dead. Especially not after the five days that had passed since the attack.

 

While the last major attack that Zoisite had directed while under Beryl’s influence had resulted in people dying it felt far off. It hadn’t been anyone that they knew. This time it was four of their own and Nephrite if you counted him as part of their group. Right now that would be a long stretch for Jadeite to consider him a member of the Shitennou even if he was dead.

 

_“The funeral for Minako Aino is being held later this week and the funeral for Usagi Tsukino has yet to be announced. The families are requesting privacy during this hard time.”_

 

Silence reigned the rest of the night in the apartment way too small for two people let alone two people and a cat. Jadeite and Artemis eventually were lulled to sleep by the droning white noise of the news reporter on TV. Zoisite had fallen asleep at his desk. Surrounding the young genius were scraps of paper. Most containing ideas on how to proceed forward or how to free the remaining Senshi and Kunzite. It would all be in vain as the future of Crystal Tokyo slipped further and further into the good night.

 

Hantaro Funeral Home -

 

Jadeite had been surprised at first when he had received a call from Usagi’s mother. Ikuko had called him in tears to inform him that Usagi had passed. He hadn’t asked specifics...they both knew it was all over the news. Without even thinking about it he informed her that he would be there. The response had been completely automatic.

 

While normally a Shinto funeral would happen all within a day the manner of Usagi’s death had led to an autopsy. That had been the first delay. Then the issue of what to do with Usagi’s body came up next. While the family was traditional in some ways they had decided they couldn’t turn their baby girl to ashes. Ikuko and Kenji had decided on a hybrid of Shinto and traditionally Western practices.

 

He only knew because Ikuko had told him everything. In a way it made sense. As far as Ikuko was concerned he had been Usagi’s boyfriend. In a way he supposed he understood where she got the notion. With a shake of his head he brought himself back to the present.

 

In front of him was the door to the funeral home. Once more he wondered what had compelled him to put himself through more pain? Perhaps it was the guilt that he hadn’t been able to stop Usagi from dying. Maybe it was the fact in a way he had inadvertently gotten her killed by shaming her for never showing up for any fights previously. He expected it to be just as bad as Minako’s funeral. He glanced over at Zoisite to find the man silently studying the building they were about to enter.

 

In the end his personal guilt over both Usagi and Minako was something he’d have to deal with on his own. Usagi’s parents’ certainly would not be sympathetic to his reasoning. Not after losing their oldest. After once more failing to talk himself out of this, Jadeite, opened the door to the funeral home and forced himself to step inside with Zoisite following a moment later.

 

There was a small atrium area where they had a guest book on a gold pedestal. How tacky. Behind the guest book was a wall covered in Usagi’s pictures. Everything from the day she was born until just a few weeks before her death. Jadeite found himself naturally drawn to the pictures and left Zoisite to enter the viewing area on his own.

 

A small smile came to his lips unbidden as he leaned in closer to one of the pictures. It was right after they had gotten Zoisite back. They were all in Usagi’s small but functional backyard sitting around a table. Adonis was even there sitting near Minako looking smitten.  Zoisite had been drawn into a one armed hug by Minako. Finally Minako was giving one of her gigawatt smiles while she hugged Usagi with her other arm who happened to be sitting on Jadeite’s lap as a joke.

 

“Jadeite.” A voice interrupted his musings. He glanced up just as he was engulfed by the mother of Usagi in a tight hug that almost caused him to lose consciousness.  

 

“I’m so glad you made it.” Ikuko murmured before she drew back from her daughter’s future husband. At least that is what she always assumed despite any protests to the contrary.

 

“Of course Ms. Tsukino.” Jadeite responded unsure of what to say or how to even proceed from this point forward. This was just as bad as Minako’s funeral. Possibly even worse since unlike Minako’s parents, Usagi’s parents were not completely self-absorbed in their own problems.

 

“What did I tell you the first day I met you.” Ikuko admonished gently. “It’s Ikuko. You earned it you know. Ever since you came into her life she changed for the better...well ignoring her little biker gang phase but I’m sure you had nothing to do with that.”

 

“Er...right.” Jadeite managed to mumble out in agreement. If she had only known just how involved he had been in the destruction of her house. She probably wouldn’t be so friendly about the entire thing.

 

Ikuko seemed to change gears in an instant as she took a step back and observed the young man. He looked a little gaunt and far too pale. “How have you been since Usagi’s passing? Are you sleeping enough? Eating enough?”

 

“I’ll be fine.” Jadeite attempted to avoid the conversation. Sleep? That had been whenever he passed out, normally in front of the TV but sometimes in his room. Eating normally only happened when Zoisite reminded him to eat.

 

Ikuko frowned at his answer but didn’t say anything further on the subject. How could she when she looked much the same. “Well just take care of yourself. Now come with me. You’re practically family after all and I know Usagi wouldn’t want you brooding out here alone.” Without further ado the matriarch of the Tsukino family practically drug Jadeite through the double doors that led into the viewing area.

 

Through some sort of miracle he managed to keep his balance upon entering the viewing area. The first thing he found his eyes drawn to was a glass casket raised off the floor ever so slightly. Usagi was positioned in a most Western way. Her hands clasped together as if in prayer and her eyes closed as if sleeping. She was dressed in a strapless all white dress that if had been standing would have flowed around her.

 

Without even realizing it, Jadeite, had pulled away from Ikuko and started walking over to Usagi. The other people in the room barely registering with him. Although it did occur to him that everyone else other than Usagi’s family appeared to be keeping as far away from the casket as possible.

 

The specter of death was an odd one. While on one hand people came here to celebrate Usagi’s life they didn’t seem too keen on staring death in the face, especially for one so young. It was odd really to see Usagi alone at the head of the room. Even her family as close as they were still seemed to draw back ever so slightly in the manner in which they say. Speaking to each other, heads turned away from the casket.

 

These thoughts passed by Jadeite’s mind in a flash but they didn’t stop him from continuing onward until he reached the casket. He kneeled in front of the casket and had to resist an urge to put his hand up to the glass. She really did look like a Princess today. He had to squash the secret hope that perhaps she really would be reborn and he would meet her again. In all likelihood they would never meet again.

 

It felt like longer than the few minutes he had actually been kneeling in front of the glass casket. If not for the fact that Ikuko had come to move him away before the ceremony started he would have probably just sat there in front of her all day lost in some form of thought. “I’ve saved you a spot.”

 

Jadeite nodded numbly before he let himself be guided over to a seat with the Tsukino family and Zoisite by Ikuko. After Ikuko had made sure that Jadeite was comfortable she departed with an understanding smile before sitting down next to Kenji and Shingo a little further down in the row.

 

“You going to be alright?” Zoisite interjected into the silence that had fallen over the entire congregation as the last remaining groups of people started to file in for the start of the ceremony and viewing.

 

In response all Zoisite got was a grunt of acknowledgement from his fellow Shitennou. It was probably the closest that he would get to Jadeite talking about his feelings. Zoisite failed to keep a long suffering sigh from leaving his lips. He knew that Jadeite was suffering because he was suffering as well and he hadn’t even been the one to kill Nephrite.

 

Zoisite’s thought process was interrupted by the start of the ceremony.

 

Game Center Crown-

 

Jadeite and Zoisite had decided to keep up their operations without Usagi, Adonis, and Minako. It had left an odd and stilted air around the apartment. Artemis had moved in which assisted them a little as the cat was able to detect most incidents of the Dark Kingdom attacking but it still wasn’t the same without Usagi.

 

While it felt like just yesterday school had let out it was already back in session. Jadeite had resumed his cover as a student and Zoisite had joined him. The two had made it a habit to meet at the Game Center Crown after class. Although Jadeite claimed the reason was that he needed to unwind after a long day of dealing with the annoying teachers and the girls that seemed to fawn all over him, the real reason was they enjoyed talking to Andrew, most of their conversations revolved around Usagi.

 

“Man...You’d think Beryl would stop sending Youma to clubs and bars at 1 in the morning. It is getting old and I really need some sleep.” Jadeite muttered as he stretched his back out as the two Shitennou walked into the Crown still in the guise of High School students at Juuban.

 

“Tactically it makes sense though. Other than large events it is the only surefire location to have a lot of people on a weekday night.” Zoisite responded as the two made their way over to the spot in front of the bar area they normally sat.

 

A loud bang at one of the tables caused the two to momentarily stop in their tracks. Luckily they blended in with the other people in the Crown that were openly staring at the four people sitting in one of the tables in the back of the Crown’s diner portion. A young brunette haired girl that looked to be in High School had slammed her fist down on the table during an argument with a tall black haired college aged youth.

 

“And I told you I think your dreams are stupid!” The young girl yelled. The bluenette seemed to have her head down typing away on a computer ignoring the entire fight and a raven haired young girl had half stood up as she started to take the brunette to task in an angry tone.

 

“Why are we posing as High School students again?” Zoisite queried with a long suffering sigh as he turned away from the brewing fight he just knew was about to occur.

 

“Because I already have the cover established and it would be weird if I just up and disappeared right after Usagi and Minako died.” Jadeite responded much calmer than he thought he would sound when talking about Usagi and Minako. For a moment longer he lingered upon the scene taking place at the booth. Finally he shook off the familiar feelings he was getting and took a seat. There was just no way the Horsemen would also be on Earth impersonating students.

 

Zoisite pinched the bridge of his nose at Jadeite’s logic...how did he let Jadeite talk him into this. “Yes you were established but why did I have to be part of this again?”

 

“Because misery loves company.” Jadeite responded blithely as he couldn’t keep his mind off of the scene that played out at the back booth.

 

“I could have just stayed in the apartment and worked out a plan to capture Kunzite.” Zoisite pointed out in a dry tone. Even he knew it was a lost cause at this point. The chips were already down and he was stuck as a Junior at Juuban High.

 

“Would you really want to be stuck with Artemis 24/7? I swear that cat has gotten even needier as of late.” Jadeite grumbled.

 

Zoisite was about to respond when the bar counter started to shake. It wasn’t a normal kind of shaking that one would expect with an Earthquake. The entire bar seemed to almost be fuzzy as if there were two of them overlapping each other but not completely on top of each other. Zoisite looked up and everywhere he looked there seemed to be both people and furniture in the same situation.

 

“An attack?” Jadeite asked uncertainty in his tone as even he did not know the Dark Kingdom to have this kind of power. He had to rub his eyes to be sure. That was when he noticed that there appeared to almost be a second hand overlaying just over top of his. Just like everything else it was almost like a copy that didn’t quite fit over the original.

 

“I’ve never seen this something like this before...” Zoisite started as he stared at his own hand in fascination. He waved it around in front of him and watched the overlaid hand seem to trail his hand. It almost looked like the trail on a computer mouse when the computer started to freeze.

 

Right as Jadeite was about to speak they were knocked to the ground along with everyone else by a pulse of energy. The shockwave sent plates and silverware clattering to the ground and glass just spontaneously broke. The windows also started to crack and an ominous creaking started to come from the building itself. Jadeite and Zoisite didn’t realize just then the amount of trouble they were in for the Dark Kingdom and her allies had set in motion a plan they would be hard pressed to stop.

 

A/N:

 

Sorry this chapter jumped around a little. The next chapter will be a little shorter since it is going to be a set up chapter for the next arc. All I can say is promise to stick with me the next two chapters. Let me know what ya think.

 

UnrulyDreamer: I know...I know well plot twists ahead and yes...yes I did. Next chapter will certainly answer some questions on how I proceed without Usagi and Minako.

 

Chrissymoon101: I’m glad you’re enjoying it.

 

Vchanny: Oh new theories do tell?

 

TropicalRemix: Yes she was. The “Moon Princess” was a clone of Kunzite’s.

 

Sage McGavin: Yup yup yup

 

Ginsan: Sooo yeah...anyway….

 


	14. Time Marches On

 

A/N: Well here we go. This is a transition chapter that will wrap up the end of the fallen universe arc and onto the second arc...which is going to get weird. I will try to explain everything in detail because this entire idea is either going to light up like my old Saturn after the transmission blew or be amazing.

 

-Gates of Time-

 

She felt a pulse in the timeline...and not a moment later a second pulse. Sailor Pluto’s eyes widened as her greatest fears came true. With a swirl of her hand she conjured up a view of her Princess and Sailor Venus. Helplessly she watched one as the lives of the Moon Princess and Sailor Venus were snuffed out. There was an ominous rumble as the timeline started to fall apart under the strain of the changes. Two prominent figures that helped shape the timeline past, present, and future dying unexpectedly caused it to go into a complete collapse.

 

“No…” She couldn’t believe it. While she had seen the evidence she thought enough had been done to counteract the Phaeton Knight’s meddling and the other changes that Wiseman had brought on. The images of the future started to crystalize into new and darker projections. Images of the Moon Kingdom while alive once more attacked on all sides by the Dark Kingdom and the Black Moon Family. The fighting after the destruction the Silver Alliance’s remnants continued on as factions of the Black Moon and Dark Kingdom split into smaller sub factions.

 

The images showed the powers of good weakened from Nephrite’s slaying of the Moon Princess and Sailor Venus. The future started to build and Sailor Pluto had to watch as Sailor Senshi and Shitennou died in attack after attack until finally only the King of Earth and Nephrite remained. The two held strong with Nephrite’s access to Zero but eventually even they fell. Sailor Pluto involuntarily gasped as the images started to crack and change. It was then she felt it...the death of Nephrite.  

 

Helplessly Setsuna stood there as the future shattered once more. Another pillar of light gone caused the future to darken even further. Scenes started to change again for Sailor Pluto. This time Nephrite was gone. This time the future held an ever darker tone as the forces of light fell even faster. In the end it was a lone Zoisite left and even he died in the end.

 

Just as the future solidified again it just as quickly started to unravel. New and disturbing changes seemed to take place of the once stable future time line. It was then that Sailor Pluto realized what had occurred.

 

“The entire timeline is unraveling. There is no longer a set future.” Sailor Pluto whispered softly as she realized that there was no longer anything to protect. Sure she could go back...attempt to fix it but was there even a point? If the timeline was so irreversibly broken it was no longer stable it meant any attempts may not even take at this point.

 

This left her with only a handful of options. She could activate Sailor Saturn...have the poor dear wipe the slate clean so to speak but that didn’t guarantee the events would play out differently. Besides she had lost track of Sailor Saturn recently. It was as if something was hiding her away from her.

 

After a moment Sailor Pluto turned her eyes back to monitor the future hoping that is would stabilize. Instead the images kept changing at a faster and faster crescendo as the future continued to unravel. Soon it was a dark Earth...one where the Dark Kingdom ruled and none of Earth’s defenders remained alive long. The Queen’s dream had truly died.

 

This left her with only one real option. It was forbidden for a reason and to the best of her knowledge no one had ever used it. Then again...how would anyone ever know? The entire ritual would bend time and space. It was considered a taboo and there was a reason that no one would know about it. With her decision made Sailor Pluto left her observation post for the second time in the last few weeks.

 

Her heels clicked as she walked through the fog. If she was a little less preoccupied she may have noticed that the Phaeton Knight was no longer frozen in place by the Time Lock and had disappeared. As she approached her destination the large foreboding door seemed to rise out of the fog. In fact if one didn’t know where to look it would be easy to miss. Despite that the entrance was enormous. As she came closer she could make out the carvings in the onyx stone.

 

Pluto’s resolve wavered for a moment. Could she really do this? No she had to. She would insure the Queen’s dream came to fruition no matter what the cost. With a swing of her key staff she willed the end of her staff to take form into the required key that would unlock this particular door. The tip of her staff took on an ethereal glow for a moment before it suddenly grew larger and the teeth of a key sprouted up near the end.

 

Without any further hesitation in carrying out her plan she raised the staff up and inserted it into the key hole that appeared the moment her key had fully formed. At first she didn’t think it would take. The doors had never been opened since it was built or so she had been told by her mother who once held this position. Finally after a few anxious moments she heard a loud clank as the door accepted the key.

 

Sailor Pluto’s staff returned to normal as she pulled it out. There was an ominous grinding sound before finally the doors started to split apart. The sound of stone dragging across stone echoed across the Gates of Time. Fog rushed into the newly revealed room covering it to the point that even Sailor Pluto doubted that it was even there. If she turned around at this point she wasn’t sure if she could find it again.

 

Never the less she forged onward. Carefully using her staff almost like a walking stick she tapped the ground ahead of her at a regular interval to confirm that there was solid ground. After what felt like an eternity the fog finally cleared and she came upon the room.

 

Like the black doors the entire room was carved out of obsidian. The entire room was bathed in an ethereal glow from the blue pulsating crystal that was embedded in the ground of the chamber directly in the center. The glow revealed the carvings that were etched across every surface and ran across the floors and up the walls.

 

Setsuna suspected if she could see the ceiling that the markings would be up there as well. The pause only lasted a moment as she had her part of the deal to uphold after all. At her will the staff’s point turned into what appeared to be a chisel. It would be her will carved into these markings but first she had to force the crystal that ran the chamber to allow the changes. The only way to make the crystal a little more flexible to meet her goals was to corrupt it ever so slightly.

 

This was where her deal with Beryl came in. With merely a thought a container of black energy appeared in her hand. “I apologize...but this is for my Queen’s future.” At those words Setsuna threw the container directly into the crystal. It shattered as the crystal started to swallow the offered item. Almost as if in pain the entire blue crystal pulsated once and the air around Sailor Pluto rippled as the crystal started to change colors until it was a midnight blue.

 

Satisfied that the crystal was now a little more malleable to her desires she began to carve signs into a portion of the wall that had not been blank before. It was agonizing for as she continued to carve the staff drew out her power by using her blood as the medium. How it performed this she did not know but she knew it to be true.

 

She grew paler and paler as she continued to carve in her desires. It was what made this ritual forbidden. What she was attempted would in the end kill her. Time passed until she had completed her task by the end she was shaking from the loss of power and the blood loss. Her weary eyes confirmed that she had written it all into the wall. Every last carving perfect.

 

Now all she had to do was activate the crystal. She was too weak to walk so she drug her weary panting form over to the crystal. The ritual was almost complete now she just had to give it a few minutes for her blood to dry completely and seal her desire into reality.

 

A slow clapping sound brought her out of her hazy thoughts of the future. “Who dares enter the Gates of Time!” She called out with more bravado in her voice than she actually felt. If she was stopped now all would lost!

 

“I never expected you to open this gate. I thought my rule abiding cousin would never dare to perform such a ritual...yet here you are in the Chamber of Beginning.” Jordan called out as he fully entered the chamber. He didn’t even bother acknowledging Setsuna’s original demand as he found it a moot point to state who entered as she could clearly see it was the black sheep of the entire Silver Alliance. “I must congratulate you for catching me unawares...rarely happens that you can actually surprise me.”  

 

“You wouldn’t understand...you could never understand.” Setsuna declared with a hint of desperation in her voice. “I had to stop you from interfering any further if you interfere now...”

 

“Wouldn’t understand? What exactly wouldn’t I understand my dear cousin?” Jordan cut her off in a commanding tone.

 

“You could never understand what I’ve been through to get to this point!” Setsuna growled in annoyance.

 

“Wouldn’t understand what you’ve been through? Please...spare me.” He spun from studying the carvings to glare at his cousin. “Tell me again why you couldn’t change the timeline to save Phaeton but you have no issue dipping into forbidden rituals if your precious future is in jeopardy.”

 

A frown marred Setsuna’s face. “You know the Queen forbade me. It was necessary.”

 

“It was necessary because the Queen didn’t appreciate my father going behind her back to make sure the Earthlings actually had a shot at defeating the Dark Kingdom. We wouldn’t want to mess with the Queen’s grand experiments...” Jordan responded in a condescending tone.

 

“You know…” Setsuna queried her eyes slightly wide at the implications.

 

“How could I not?” Jordan rolled his eyes. “Nephrite kept on screaming it at every encounter. It was simple enough to follow up on. Getting the mainframe online was a bitch but that’s Mercurian’s for you. They try to play with dad’s toys and manage to almost break them. Once I was in I just had to blow past their security…well…if you can call it that and my did I find something interesting about the Queen’s original meeting with the Earthlings.”

 

“Zero was locked away for a reason and you know that.” Setsuna started.

 

Jordan laughed a loud before he began in a mocking tone. “Oh yes...nothing better than locking away the Earth’s spirit without an explanation to make it see reason. I’m sure it didn’t build up any resentment at all. That couldn’t have been the reason Zero caused Nephrite to snap and kill the Moon Princess.” With a pause to let it sink in the angered Phaeton continued. “Oh wait...it was...the Queen played god...and royally fucked up. She fucked up so hard that she is the cause of her daughter dying not once but twice! But tell me again dear cousin, how her dream for the future is perfect.”

 

A look of shock crossed Setsuna’s face at Jordan’s accusation. While it wasn’t a surprise as Jordan had never made an effort to hide his feelings about the Queen he rarely if ever went this far. A hint of trepidation entered her voice. “Her sacrifice allowed for a future she had dreamed of for her daughter. While it wasn’t perfect and there were some variables she knew with my assistance the resurrection of the Silver Alliance could be achieved.”

 

“Are you telling me that the Queen knew of the fall of the Silver Alliance?” Jordan asked with a hint of incredulousness to his voice. He had ceased his study of the carvings completely that he had been absently studying while half listening to his cousin prattle on. If one thing was for certain staying in isolation at the Time Gates had not helped her even a little. It seemed that she had clung onto the Queen’s last command and made it her anchor, the reason for living. Never a good thing.

 

“You must remember that her Highness was a seer from her father’s bloodline. While her powers were nowhere near refined as my own she saw the outcome of the Silver Millennium’s end. Upon seeing the possible outcomes of the future she came to me and begged me for my assistance.” Setsuna was startled by Jordan’s sudden interruption.

 

“Your assistance for what exactly?” If he had known sooner he may have been able to counter Setsuna but even he was blindsided by this. It implied that Setsuna the supposed keeper of the Gates of Time had been meddling far more than she had any right to. A small smirk crossed his face...so much for the high and mighty rule abiding Setsuna.

 

There was a pause as Setsuna seemed to debate how to answer exactly. If anything Jordan while pig headed and stubborn at times was a man that saw reason. Due to Phaeton’s advanced intelligence and scientific community they valued reasoning and logic above all else. With a sigh she decided to tell him everything in hopes of swaying him. “The Queen saw the possible futures...one where the forces for good were never awakened and the Dark Kingdom ruled all, one where the Sailor Senshi awakened along with Endymion but the Shitennou nor you were ever awakened...and this future here.”

 

Jordan put up a hand right there. “I think I can deduce the one she preferred from here. Let me take a guess I’m going to go with the second option. Without the Shitennou around to assist Endymion, he would have had little more power than a child compared to what he would have been able to access if they were around. So that would have set the Princess and the Sailor Senshi in a position where no one could really come out and challenge any of their decisions which compared to the option of the Dark Kingdom would look pretty great to most people. Then they would have reawakened their old planets and I’m sure the Mercurians using the left over tech from my people would have somehow stumbled and bumbled their way into reactivating the world gates. Then presto, instant new Silver Alliance with Earth as the new center ruled by the Moon and bonus I nor the Shitennou would have been around to object. Sound about right?”

 

Setsuna’s frown said it all. A self-satisfied smirk crossed Jordan’s lips. So predictable. While the old Queen Serenity wasn’t evil per say the woman was a conniving politician at heart. Back near the end of the Silver Millennium the Earth had the entire Alliance bent over a barrel and their demands would have at the time ironically put Earth in charge of the entire Alliance. He couldn’t say he was surprised that the Queen decided to play the long game.

 

Back during the Silver Millennium he had felt pretty good about getting one over on the old harpy. With his help Endymion had completely blindsided the entire Alliance and in the end picked up the majority of the Alliance in ransom. It had been a dastardly plan and he had loved every second of it. Now he realized that it had all been a tactical retreat on her part. Give Earth what it wanted to give her enough time to set up the pieces to take back the whole pot in the future. She played dangerously and he was further impressed by the fact she had died leaving it all on Setsuna to carry it out. No wonder she hadn’t been too keen on letting anyone keep their memories of the past completely intact.

 

“It was the Princess’s destiny…” Setsuna responded sounding a little less resolute after Jordan rattling off what had more or less been the plan to start with. “If Wiseman hadn’t interfered the correct time line would have been preserved. The outcome of this timeline even with my assistance was doomed to fail. While the Alliance would come about it was not what the Queen dreamed of. There were changes in this timeline that the Queen did not approve of seeing take place.”

 

“Ah of course…” Jordan nodded knowingly. While Jadeite had been blind to it and perhaps even Zoisite to a certain extent, he realized that the young man was not just torn up from the loss of two friends. “You’re speaking of the relationship between Jadeite and the Princess.”

 

“Yes.” Setsuna’s voice filled with a glimmer of hope. Perhaps he did finally understand why this timeline could not be allowed to continue. “Even if I were to go back in time there are certain events I could not stop on my own which would in turn lead to the future the Queen would not want for her daughter. So I have no choice.”

 

“Oh please don’t act like you don’t have a choice. You just hide behind your high morals when it is convenient and now I find you’ve been bending the rules the entire time. So what are your plans then if you won’t go back in time? This chamber has only one purpose after all.” While he had a general idea of just what she was going to do and could carry through with his plans on his hunch it’d be better to hear it straight from her mouth. No need for useless errors.

 

“No need to play coy.” Setsuna felt the energy starting to hum through the air as the power started to flow through the carvings. Good it had started at this point there was nothing that Jordan could do to stop it. “I am merging the timelines. This one has become unsalvageable and with the Princess dead it is the perfect opportunity to start fresh.”

 

“Start fresh?” Jordan queried a small smirk resting at the corner of his lips. “And just what are we starting fresh?”

 

“After the merge those from this universe will no longer have their memories. Those memories will be suppressed and forgotten. At most they will get glimpses of another life in their dreams. With Usagi and Minako dead they will be replaced by the universe we’re merging with. The Senshi will be saved from their fate and the Shitennou will be dealt with.” Setsuna explained. It wouldn’t hurt to inform Jordan of the changes. In a few minutes he’d forget this entire conversation and she’d be dead replaced by the other universe’s Setsuna such was the cost of the ritual. There was a reason it was considered forbidden.

 

“And Jadeite? You know he always seems to defy the odds in some way or another.” Jordan kept Setsuna talking as he reached his hand into his pocket and grasped the two soul crystals. One had a little bit of an orange tint and the other was a pure silver. In fact they were the soul crystals of Usagi and Minako. Such a good thing the families had chosen to go the non-traditional route of burial. After a little grave robbing and some mutilation of corpses he now possessed two freshly harvested soul crystals.

 

“I’ve seen this timeline. When I was first looking for one to merge with. It is imperfect and will also fall apart without the merge. In this one the Sailor Senshi have been hobbled by Jadeite. While Sailor Moon has activated Sailor Mercury he killed Sailor Mercury mid transformation. If things continue they will fail but if the merge takes place Jadeite will be killed before he can find a way to reawaken his old memories and save the remaining Shitennou.” Setsuna hadn’t had the power available to view the outcome of the new merged universe since the first time. Since then she had been saving up power for this ritual and it was almost complete.

 

“And just how do you think Jadeite will be killed before he has a chance to remember...once again the insurmountable jackass has a way of doing the unexpected.” Jordan rolled his eyes in annoyance at Setsuna’s inability to see people for what they were and not pawns on the board. Never mind the fact that he viewed people as exactly that...he was just smart enough to add the variables in.

 

“How do you think I got the dark energy I used to activate the chamber?” Setsuna whispered in a tight voice. “I worked with Beryl. For the dark energy I promised her that she would retain her memories and I would take care of her Dark Horsemen problem. My only condition was that she would find a way to kill Jadeite. I informed her that no matter what was to happen he had to be eliminated immediately. What I didn’t tell her was that once the merge took place she was sure to be defeated by the Sailor Senshi.”  

 

Jordan gave her a cool look. For once he was too angry for words. What little respect he had for his cousin had evaporated. Perhaps closing this universe off was for the best. While he used to enjoy attempting to taunt her about always following the rules it was a bit of shock to discover she had not only bent the rules but had flat out broken them. With a shake of his head he decided it was almost time to go. Although he could easily shield himself by bending space around himself to deflect the changes...he rather not test it at ground zero.

 

“Pitiful Setsuna...that you would go to such lengths to fulfill a conniving old harpy’s dream for her perfect kingdom. How the mighty have truly fallen. I think it will be best if this version of you dies before you fuck anything up any further. I’ve always had to pick up other people’s messes but there was always someone I held to a higher standard...and now I find out you’re the worst one out of the bunch.” Jordan gave a disgusted shake of his head. This was beyond anything he could have imagined.

 

Just as it was nearing its final stages that neither Jordan nor Setsuna could stop she saw Jordan carving something into the wall and placed two soul crystals onto the wall. She watched helplessly as the wall started to absorb them. “What are you doing?” Setsuna screamed a crazed look entering her eyes.

 

“Oh just making sure that I can reactivate the memories of this universe’s Usagi and Minako. It would be most inconvenient trying to cobble the memories together from what I witnessed and I certainly don’t want to try to start over again with Blinky and Bubbles...although Snarf I could do without.” Jordan stated in a mock casual tone as if he was simply speaking of the weather as he even went so far as to tap his chin as if in thought.

 

“You act as if you’ll remember...but you’ll be wiped away from this universe along with everyone else. Even if you somehow access your memories you’ll be too late!” Setsuna nearly ranted in close to sheer panic. At the pit of her stomach a sense of dread started to spread outwards. Had there been a variable she had forgotten about? It didn’t matter.

 

“I hope it was worth it.” Jordan responded simply without really answering her questions. The walls were now glowing almost a solid blue. The ritual was almost complete. It was time to go...besides he had one or two more house cleaning items on his list. If he was quick enough he’d be able to get it all done before the merge finalized. With a snap of his fingers he disappeared just as Setsuna finally recalled his powers.

 

Setsuna let out a useless scream railing against the injustice of it all. All of her work was about to be ruined and her Queen’s dream would disappear! The entire room started to fill with light before a giant pulse left the chamber. The pulse of energy consumed Setsuna taking her life as the price for such a dark ritual. From the Gates of Time the pulse of energy expanded. It hurtled towards Earth and as it passed each planet it gained speed. Each planet it touched seemed to resonate with the power and briefly took on a blue hue as the merge was complete.

 

While the merge did not affect much on the other planets when it reached Earth a different process occurred. For just a few minutes it seemed that two Earths were there. One overlapping the other one. As the two universes assimilated though the overlap became fainter until it disappeared completely leaving only one. For most people on Earth they would describe dreams over the next few years of a different world. These dreams would feel so real that some people would take these dreams as signs of the future.

  


A/N: So again hopefully this will answer some of how I’m bringing Usagi back. Next chapter we’ll have Jordan interacting with Setsuna a little and it will be set up chapter. We’ll check in to see how everyone is after the merge and how it has changed everything. Hope everyone enjoys the insanity.

 

Chrissymoon101: Thanks glad you enjoyed. Hopefully you enjoyed another interesting turn.

Ginsan: This entire operation is going to either be amazing or horrible. The new Setsuna will be a little closer to the manga Setsuna and I think the interactions will be a little closer to what you’d expect.

Catspirit: Well…pretty much yeah...just a little different. The next chapter will explain more of the merge and we’ll see where Jadeite and Zoisite are. Unfortunately this version of Setsuna was completely corrupted and we’ll touch on that a little next chapter.   
  



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